MariChat: Chat Out Of The Bag
by QuirkQuartz
Summary: Chat Noir's identity has been revealed in the worst possible way imaginable - In front of a nation-wide broadcast crew while facing an Akuma. His life is shaken dramatically, nothing can be the same again, and there is only one source of stability for both Adrien Agreste and Chat Noir now. How do things change when everyone knows their hero? MariChat, Adrienette, Ladynoir, Ladrien
1. A long Day

"Aaaaaaaaaawwwwhhh..."

Adrien Agreste allowed his exhausted body to simply collapse onto his bed, accompanied by a very loud yawn, the very moment he returned from what had been one of the longest photo-shoots of his entire life. This one had to come up to at least 8 hours, but at this point, Adrien couldn't care less how long it had taken. All he wanted was to relax for fifteen minutes.

Recently, his father had been pushing him with his photo-shoots, although claimed that this was the last big one in a while. It had cost Adrien an entire week of school, something he was less than pleased about. He had joined a public school for the chance to make some friends, and now he was feeling like he was slowly losing the ones he had made. He had texted Nino, his closest friend, to let him know, and once again, almost predictably, he had replied back, telling him it had been no problem.

That was an entire week ago. Well, exactly six days, but that had been on Monday. Today was Saturday. Thankfully, the good news was, Adrien relax and recharge tomorrow, and then go back to school on Monday.

Ensuring that his Kwami, Plagg, would not interrupt his planned nap, Adrien made sure he had prepared a small buffet of cheese, with small sides of the few things Plagg would ask for on the immensely rare occasions he asked for anything other than cheese. It was beyond the young Parisian how his cat-like partner could even stomach cheese, particularly Camembert, never mind how he could stand the stench of it. Regardless of the putrid smell of it, Adrien slid the tray he kept it all on from under his bed, thankful the cleaners hadn't found it. He had enough awkward moments as it was. Explaining why there was a tray of cheese and odd foods hidden under his bed was not one he wanted to add that that list.

"Adrien, you can be an absolute joy to behold sometimes!" His kwami chimed, staring at the buffet and variety he now had in front of him. "Almost makes your lovey-duvy sickly stuff worth putting up with!"

"Knock yourself out." Adrien said, with another yawn, totally ignoring Plaggs last statement. "Just don't wake me up."

"Can do!" His black Kwami said in compliance before charging head-first into the mountain of cheese he had to consume.

Smiling was something Adrien couldn't avoid. He and Plagg had a turbulent relationship, certainly, but he had definitely grown fond of the tiny magical creature. Rolling over onto his back, Adrien closed his eyes, and let out a loud sigh.

Only to be instantly met with a loud vibration coming from his right.

His phone, in his bag. He was being called.

The first impulse the young model had was to grab his alarm clock and throw it at his bag to stop the noise. The second one, which was the one he followed through with, was to open his eyes and groan. He wasn't sure if some cosmic entity had decided that he was their punching bag in the universe for the past week, but stuff like this seemed to be happening at an impossible frequency, like someone had something against Adrien getting rest. With a sigh, he muttered, "If its not you, Plagg, it's my phone."

Acting on friendly initiative, Plagg, after stuffing his cheeks with cheese like a dairy-based chipmunk, quickly flew inside Adrien's bag, and reemerged a few seconds later, carrying his partners phone. He hovered in front of Adrien with it, waiting for his human partner to take it. "Here!"

"...What do you want?" Adrien asked with a raised eyebrow, not thinking for a second that Plagg did that just to be helpful. There was always, always a hidden angle for his work.

"Another helping of Camembert."

"You haven't even finished the first one!"

"I don't see any deserts on here though."

"Plagg... You're killing me." Adrien said with a weak smile as he took his phone, promising to see what he could do for his Kwami. Barely able to keep his eyes open, Adrien hit the answer button on the call.

"Adrien, dude!" Keeping one eye open, Adrien saw his best friend, Nino, on the other side of the video call. It caught the blond model off guard slightly. He hadn't noticed that it was a video call, so he quickly tried to make himself look as awake as possible.

"Nino. How're you doing, man?"

"Dude, you look exhausted. You doing okay?"

 _'Well, that didn't last too long.'_ Adrien thought to himself. Then again, he knew he looked like a mess right now. It wasn't the normal situation you'd find a young model in, especially not one with Adrien's reputation. But he saw now, from his face in a small icon on the top right corner of the screen, he really could not hide his exhaustion. His hair was messy, and unbrushed, and there were small black bags appearing under his eyes. Normally, these would be covered up with some skin colored make up, but he had removed this particular cosmetic, mostly to avoid stains on his bed-sheets. Not only that, but his eyes were having trouble staying open, dimming his usually bright green eyes. He smiled weakly, trying to brush it off. "Long day, that's all. What's up?"

"Nothing much, man. Just wanted to make sure you were alright was all." Nino replied. That sounded like a thing he would do. Since he had met the guy, Nino had been nothing but cool with Adrien, helping him adjust to public school life, and just generally being a great person to be around. The blonde teenager couldn't have asked for a better friend. "Alya and Marinette have been asking about you all week. They're here with me right now."

Adrien's friend tilted his camera to scan over the two girls, whom were at either side of him. Alya was to his right hand side, and she had a calm, relaxed smile on her face. She waved a polite hello. Another one of Adrien's friends, Alya ran the Ladyblog, and was very dedicated to discovering Ladybug and Char Noir's secret identities. While this happening would be an absolute nightmare for Adrien, he had to admire his friends dedication and passion to reporting. He felt far more intimidated by her than he did any other media outlet, the trained professionals, which spoke a lot about her.

And to the left, a very clearly nervous and awkwardly laughing Marinette. Awkward really was the word to describe the shy blunette, but Adrien saw her as a kind person, and definitely considered her a friend. She was kind, caring, and had one hell of a talent for fashion design. Being at the front of fashion, Adrien knew that in maybe ten years, it wasn't unlikely to see her name as a brand for fashion clothing. She really was that good.

Although she did seem to have an issue speaking to the model himself. He had a few theories about this one, but he had decided that it was mostly because she felt a bit intimidated by him. He was a famous model, after all. It would be hard to not feel a bit intimidated by someone like that.

"Sorry to have you guys worrying about me." The model yawned, and wiping a tear that had swelled up from his bodily reaction to exhaustion. "I've been doing shoots all week. I didn't miss anything too important, did I?"

It was the first time Alya spoke up in the entire call. "Aside from Chloe acting up like always, not much. Although, you're gonna be behind on homework."

"Great." Adrien said with a small laugh. Despite his vocal reluctance, he didn't really mind homework all that much. It was better than a photo shoot. It made him feel normal. But the amount of homework French school gave was at least one or two hours a day. Tally that up, and you had roughly eight or ten hours worth to do. That was daunting for pretty much anyone.

From what Paris' famous model could almost swear, a glint seemed to appear in Alya's eye, as she pulled Marinette into the focus of the camera, with a small smirk on her lips. "Marinette could help you catch up!"

"Whaaa - Me?!" Adrien couldn't help but smirk as the shy girl was thrown into her direct discomfort zone. She had such little confidence, despite possessing so many talents. The truth of the matter was, they hadn't spoken as much as he would have liked to, ideally, for a friend. He didn't oppose the idea in the least.

"Well, _someone_ needs to deliver his work to him anyway, girl." Alya said, listing off points with her fingers. "You live close by, relatively speaking, you know where he lives, and you're pretty good at the work."

"I - Uh... I mean, I suppose I could..."

"I hate to ask, but if you could, I could use the help." Adrien requested, as politely and as friendly as he could. He added a kind smile.

The blunettes face seemed to go a darker red than it usually seemed to do around him. Thrown out of her comfort zone and asked to aid someone she felt intimidated by, Adrien could hardly blame her. "I - I uh... I'd help to lov - I mean, I love - I mean, I'd um, I'd be happy to!"

A smile appeared on Adrien's face. "Thanks. You've got my number, right? Just... Sorry if I sound totally out of it. " He joked. "Speaking of which... I'm gonna get some sleep, guys, I'm totally exhausted."

"No problem, man, we'll talk later." Nino said with a smile, before hanging up his phone, leaving Adrien once again in a quiet room, filled only with the noise of his glutton of a Kwami stuffing his face with cheese.

Before the feed had been cut off, Adrien had seen Marinette going totally scarlet red, with a ridiculous smile on her face. Alya had even waved her hands in front of the blue haired girl, snapping her fingers, trying to get her attention. Before the call was over, she seemed to get through to the amateur fashion designer, as she turned around in embarrassment.

"That Marinette girl..." Plagg started, before taking another huge bite out of his Camembert cheese. "...Chat Noir ran into her a few times, right?"

"Yeah." The exhausted teenager said, laying in his back and closing his eyes. There was the deal with the Evillustrator where he had acted as her bodyguard, there was the deal with the Puppeteer, and various others that the tired boy couldn't even begin to remember.

"Don't you find it weird that she seems more nervous around you than she does around Chat?" The Kwami asked, with a mouthful of cheese, muffling his words somewhat.

Adrien had to admit, it was a bit weird. When he had spoken with the shy, blue haired girl as his alter-ego, Chat Noir, she seemed to be rather relaxed, and somewhat sassy with him, like a far more laid back version of Ladybug. When around Adrien, just plain old Adrien, the same boy whose face was everywhere in Paris, that it even made Adrien tired of seeing his own face in the mirror, she seemed to collapse into an awkward mess.

It was like she was a totally different person depending in whom she was talking to.

Not once really considering it, he had to admit, there was something strange about that. But it wasn't really his business, was it? The fact of the matter was, he didn't mind the way Marinette acted, and found it somewhat cute and amusing the way she was around him.

Hopefully, this little homework session in a few days would relax her around him. Show her he wasn't some sort of big shot superstar that had to be impressed. He was normal. Like her.

"Adrien?" Plagg asked again. He was met with the sound of silence.

Curious, the cat-like Kwami hovered up to the side of Adriens bed. "Adrien? Are you gonna answer me or - "

He was instead met by the light sound of breathing, from an exhausted soul. The fatigued Parisian had fallen asleep practically the second his eyes finally shut.

Curiously, those memories of times he had run into Marinette stuck with Adrien as he slept.

* * *

Aaaaaaaaaawwwwhhh..."

A quarter to midnight struck, and Adrien still was exhausted, even after his brief nap.

Except, technically now, he wasn't Adrien. Right now, he was Chat Noir, one half of the Parisian crime fighting duo. Equipped with an extending baton staff, skin tightly leather-like suit, and an artificial tail, and semi - useful cat ears, made of a similar material as his suit was. Enhanced agility, strength, and durability combined to make the Parisian hero, Chat Noir.

"Again?"

Alongside him stood the face of the duo, figuratively speaking anyway. A red jumpsuit covered in exactly 43 black polka-dots - Which Chat knew for a fact she would kill him for mentioning, as well as asking some very awkward questions as to how he knew that - Was Ladybug. Also known to Chat Noir and Adrien alike as the girl of his affections.

"I told you, other me has been busy all week." Chat said, defending himself, sitting in the edge of the building the two of them found themselves atop of.

The night had been quiet. Especially quiet for this week. The last Akuma attack had been at least three weeks ago, and Paris had been peaceful, and effectively crime free. Once or twice a night there would be reports of a burglary or a mugging, but the police handled it within moments. In the grand scale of the city, it was a very low amount of incidents.

But tonight had been exceptionally quiet even under those circumstances. There hardly even seemed to be a lone car on the roads, or a pedestrian on the streets, like the town was dead. Their nightly patrol had gone as expected. The lights shone on the streets, revealing absolutely nothing on the streets.

"Lucky for us, there doesn't seem to be anything going on tonight either." Ladybug said with a sigh, crouching down next to Noir, checking the streets for roughly the 24th time, ever dedicated.

"Yeah..." Chat replied, with another yawn.

"Well, somethings definitely wrong." Ladybug said, sitting next to her partner, glancing at him. "You haven't tried flirting with me, or making any of your awful puns all night. You really should have stayed home, I could have managed on my own."

"And miss the opportunity to see you tonight, m'lady?" Chat said, trying to pick up what he had left out. Ladybug had been right. He hadn't flirted with her, tried to swoon her, or made a single pun all night, practically his trademarks. He had just been too tired to even consider either of them. "I'm _feline_ fine, bugaboo."

Stealing a glance at the girl whom he harbored romantic feelings for, he could see some of that rare, genuine worry in her eyes. "You don't suppose Hawkmoth decided that he had had enough of us and _flew_ outta town, do you?" He still tried to recover the situation, albeit failing. Ladybug didn't even groan, but looked at him with concern. It was too little, too late.

"Chat, what's wrong?" She asked him, gently. There was obvious, genuine concern to her question, the kind that the two of them could hardly ever share. It was rare for them to even have a moment to themselves, but now that they had nothing but minutes to themselves, they were both a bit awkward around one another, unsure of what to say. Only now were they even having a proper conversation for the first time that didn't involve their work.

Appreciative and thankful as Chat Noir was, he couldn't say anything to Ladybug. How could he? She wanted to keep their identities a secret, even from one another, and as much as that torn Chat Noir to pieces inside, he respected her wishes in that regard. The issue lied with Adrien. And how could he even dare to complain? To everyone in Paris, he was a rich high school over achiever with fame and fortune, lived in a huge mansion near the Eiffel Tower, and practically had his future guaranteed. Excluding the fact that this was his alternative life, was there really anyone who would even take his issues seriously?

The fact remained that, despite how cold, demanding, and in some cases, completely cruel his father was, there hadn't been a single thing he hadn't given Adrien. Everything he asked for, he got, with little to no questions. Possession-wise, anyway.

The thing he really craved for was affection. Love. Someone who made him feel like he mattered. He hadn't gotten that since his mother had gone.

When he became Chat Noir, all these concerns disappeared, and he wasn't restricted to the same old routine of being formal and polite every time he opened his mouth. He wasn't required to be an obedient ideal son, a slave to his fathers demands, or the model that all of Paris loved. He was free. He could act how he wanted, allowing his true nature to come out. A slightly cocky, fun loving, wild and energetic pun machine. Confidence in place of formality, and courage in place of slavery to his father.

They disappeared, but they still existed. They were all Chat Noir had to look forward to as Adrien.

Perhaps that was one of the big reasons he fell for Ladybug, he contemplated.

"I'm telling you, I'm fine, m'lady." Chat Noir said again, trying his best to reassure the super heroine beside him. He smiled as brightly as he could, showing some of his white teeth as he did so. There wasn't any reason in bothering Ladybug with his other lives problems. Even if he found a way to tell her without her discovering he was Adrien Agreste - Not that he would mind her knowing - what could she really do? She was a hero. Not a vigilante.

Ladybug sighed, realizing the cat wasn't going to spill his guts to her. "Alright then, kitty. Maybe you should just go home, get some sleep. You look like you really need it."

Part of Chat agreed. He was running on reserve energy, and wasn't sure when he was going to just drop down out of exhaustion. Plus, he had to be ready for a call from Marinette tomorrow anyway. It would really be unfair to her if he slept right through that too. The other half wanted to say no. That he was fine, just to stay near Ladybug, for just a while longer.

"Maybe I should go too." Ladybug continued. "I have things to do tomorrow as well."

Chat Noir sighed. "Well, m'lady, if you're headed home early, I suppose I'll head home too. Care for an escort?"

"So you can figure out where I live and who I am?" The polka-dotted heroine smirked. "Nice try, Kitty."

"Ah, well. Had to try." Chat shrugged with his usual smirk that he wore when he had been caught out like that. "Then I suppose with that, I bid you, a fond adieu, m'lady."

Ladybug jumped from the building, and used her trademark yo-yo to grapple onto a ledge or a lamppost, or something else, whatever it was, and swung up high, leaping over buildings on her way home. She moved quickly, gracefully, and with elegance.

And for the first time in his life, Char Noir didn't watch her with jaw dropped and in awe. He didn't even feel his heart race as she disappeared. She was just gone. Just like that.

And he didn't feel a thing.

* * *

"Alright, spill it, what's wrong with you?"

Plagg had been unusually serious and adamant when Chat Noir had returned home and transformed back to Adrien. Under a normal night, Plagg would just retire instantly to a small bed next to Adrien's, located by his lamp, just on the table, filled with cotton that Adrien had gathered for him.

Not tonight though.

"Every time I've merged with you to become Chat Noir, I've been able to roughly tell whats going through your head and heart when you're doing what you're doing. Normally, your heart is going a mile a minute when around Ladybug, but tonight, it was totally normal. That can't relate to you being tired. Whats going on?" Plagg had bombarded him the second they were separated.

Seeing his Kwami friend being so serious was something Adrien was simply not used to, and he felt slightly overwhelmed by it. This was the same Kwami that convinced him to enjoy a party being held by the Bubbler, played difficult with him when he needed to transform, and only a few hours ago, had been cheeky enough to ask for more Camembert before he had even finished the first helping when Adrien presented him with a buffet of cheese.

Plagg being serious was just too weird for Adrien.

"I... I don't know, Plagg." Adrien admitted truthfully "I don't know."

The truth was that. He really did have no idea why he was like that. It felt so weird, so surreal to him that he hadn't felt a thing when she was there, and the same when she had left. It almost upset him, and he tried to think back to her, back to his Ladybug. His bugaboo. His lady.

But nothing came from it.

No increased heartbeat.

No blush.

Not even a smile.

"Plagg... Is there something wrong with me?" A concerned Parisian asked, worriedly.

"How would I know?" His Kwami responded, unhelpful as ever. "You're the one who insisted you had fallen in love with her."

"I _am_ in love with her!"

"Your heart's suggesting otherwise."

"But... But that doesn't even make any _sense_!" Adrien exclaimed, a bit too loudly for his liking. Luckily, he hadn't been heard, but the fact remained.

This entire week of photo-shoots, he has been totally and utterly worn-out, but he had always, always, always made sure to go out on patrol with Ladybug, despite how close he had been to collapsing from fatigue. That spark, that energy, that love, it had always been there for her, it had never gone anywhere. It had been what had kept him awake.

Not until tonight. So what had happened?

"If you want my opinion, maybe you're just getting bored of seeing her?" Plagg suggested. He was trying to be helpful, but his suggestion made the model want to punch him.

"You can't just get bored of seeing someone you love!" He shot back at the Kwami, raising his voice once again.

"Why not? Even I get tired of seeing Camembert sometimes... Not often, but sometimes."

"Urgh... Plagg, eating your favorite dish over and over, and seeing someone you love over and over are two things you just can't compare like that." He tried to explain it, but it wouldn't do him any good, he knew. "Its like... Its like being lost. Completely alone. Unsure of yourself, and unsatisfied with your life. And then comes along someone who can just... Erase all that. Someone who you just... Can't be without."

"And you think Ladybug is that person?"

"I'm certain. At least... I was..."

"Well, has anyone else been on your mind?"

Adrien thought back over the past week, thinking about what he had thought about during that time. It was mostly w whiz, a slideshow, a rapidly moving motion of his photo-shoots, and how he had thought about what he was doing.

What had he wanted to do more than anything during that time?

The answer to that much was simple. He wanted to be in school.

He wanted to be around Nino, whom made him laugh on a regular basis. He wanted to be around Alya, whom made him feel comfortable to just joke around with.

He wanted to be around Marinette, the shy, clumsy blunette girl, whom barely even seemed able to speak to him for extended periods of time. Someone whom made him smile without even trying to. Someone whom... Whom...

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Adrien said aloud, vocalizing his thoughts. "Marinette?"

"You said it." Plagg told him, sitting down on the stand, next to his bed as he continued to converse with Chat Noir's alter ego. "Not me."

"Wait a second, Plagg, let me get this straight, are you seriously _insinuating_ that I _might_ have a crush on Marinette?"

"I never suggested anything." Plagg shrugged. "All I suggested was that you might be getting sick of seeing Ladybug. Anything else, you came to the conclusion on your own. And if I remember, Marinette is coming over tomorrow to help you, isn't she?"

Outsmarted by the laziest individual he knew, Adrien had to admit... It almost made sense. It explained why he had suddenly felt nothing when he was around Ladybug. Was that his subconscious trying to tell him something? Was his heart only just catching up to his brains thought process?

"But... But I barely even know Marinette." Adrien said, quietly. Even that aspect made sense. He wanted to get to know her. It only aided the current theory. He knew her a decent amount. Circumstance had forced them into various social situations, and they had all gone decently. Many had even been enjoyable.

"Don't most crushes start with the crushing person barely knowing their crush?" Plagg asked, this time with genuine curiosity. Clueless to emotions, Adrien was pretty much all that this Kwami had to go with when it came to emotional understanding.

"Besides, how well do you really know _Ladybug_?"

For the first time all night, Plagg had made a totally valid point.

"I mean, I guess." Adrien conceded, scarcely even able to comprehend that Plagg was being serious about romance of all things. The young model had to stifle a laugh and smirked. "I thought this sort of talk made you feel ill?"

"Urgh, believe me, all this lovey talk is enough to make my stomach churn. The only reason I'm even bothering is because you need to be in top condition if you want to do your work as Chat Noir effectively." Plagg defended.

"Aww, so you _do_ care."

"This service doesn't come free, you know!"

"I'll make sure to get you some Camembert in the morning." Adrien said with a smirk as he laid down on his mattress again.

Could his Kwami be right? Was it something to do with Marinette? Was it possible he just missed his friends so much, and had grown so used to seeing Ladybug, that he wanted to be around them more than he wanted to be around Ladybug right now?

That could explain it...

"Well, either way, Marinette is coming tomorrow." Adrien muttered. "Maybe after that, I'll have a better idea."

* * *

 **Well, I told you all to expect something like this, and here it is! The first Miraculous work I've done so far. Now I do warn you, this story is on a slow boil, and won't get to the main point of the story for a few more chapters to come, but I'm hoping to provide you guys with enough entertainment and quality storytelling to keep you interested that long!**

 **Now, because this is a brand new story, a brand new fandom, and a brand new genre for me to be writing in, I do need your guys' help - How is the story? It is good? Bad? Are the characters in character? Do their responses seem appropriate? I still have limited material to work with seeing as there's only 26 episodes of this show so far, so I've had to take what I can get from those, and their wiki bios. I'm hoping that you guys do indeed like this sort of story. If you're here because you're following me because of my Pokemon stories, don't feel like I'm forcing you to read this, but i do whole-heartedly recommend watching the show. It's something glorious.**

 **Be sure to let me know guys, and I hope you enjoyed this. Love, Loss & Loyalty will be updated soon, for those of you who are wondering. **

**You can find this, my independent works, and more, on my Wattpad - Link is in my profile description, along with my YouTube, for games and such.**

 **And I hope to see you guys in whatever it is I do indeed decide to write next - See ya!**


	2. Seeds of Doubt

It was only about 8:30 when Adrien woke up, totaling at around seven hours of rest, but he was up, and completely rested. The nap he had taken the previous night had helped a little, so he felt totally refreshed. His eyes were still a bit heavy, as they tended to be in a morning, but he didn't have an issue with getting up, getting dressed, getting showered, and getting ready to face the day.

Plagg was still sleeping by the time Adrien had gotten out of the shower and thrown on his regular casual clothing. This included a basic white T-Shirt, and beige Levi jeans. They weren't too different to his regular clothes, but Adrien just liked the look. The colors suited him, he felt. He had dried his hair and applied the regular gel and combed it, and still Plagg wasn't awake, even though this process took roughly ten minutes, and Adrien hadn't exactly been quiet about it.

That suited Adrien fine though. Marinette was showing up today, and it was vital that Plagg be out of the way for that. When Adrien thought about it, that may include confining him to a closet for up to ten hours. That seemed a bit harsh for his black cat-like friend. Maybe he could let his Kwami fly around on the balcony of his room, along with the books he had? Risky, but it would be fair to Plagg at least, if he kept quiet. It would be something to do, at least. He'd have to discuss it with Plagg before Marinette showed up.

Reminded of Marinette's visit, he checked his phone, and scribbled his password into the touch screen, but saw that there hadn't been a call yet. He was thankful he hadn't managed to sleep through her calls or messages, so he had that. Maybe she wasn't awake yet. Or maybe she was being considerate to his exhaustion, and was giving him time to wake up. The more likely explanation was that he was overthinking things.

Deciding to leave Plagg to his rest, Adrien left his room, quietly shutting the door so Plagg didn't get woken up by it, and went to acquire some breakfast. So he didn't miss any calls from Marinette, he also tucked his phone into his right pocket, and made his way down the hall. On Sundays, it was rare that he would see his father for breakfast, like any other day, but Sundays, his father made no effort to make time for him. Throughout the rest of the week, Nathalie, whom acted as his secretary to both him and his father, would come with excuses at the very least, such as there was an last minute meeting with a client, but on the final day of the week, it was just a given that he would be eating breakfast alone. He didn't even bother to ask Nathalie for his fathers schedule. He would be in a planning meeting, out of the house, at a public event, anywhere other than home. It had just become part of the norm in the Agreste estate. It had gotten to the point where Adrien would consider himself lucky to even see his father whatsoever throughout the day.

He didn't bother the chefs with requests for a breakfast meal. For whatever reason, he didn't feel like waiting around for something to eat. Instead, he just grabbed himself a cereal bar and a piece of Camembert for Plagg, remembering his promise to the Kwami from the previous night. He was growing increasingly weary of carrying this putrid smelling substance everywhere he went. Before the cat like creature had shown up in his life, he hadn't gone anywhere near the stuff. Now he hadn't managed a day without going near it. He made sure to wrap it up in foil and clingfilm, to make sure that if he ran into anyone on the way back to his room, they didn't see the substance, and he could pass it off as a gift from some fan. Weirder things had happened to him in regards to fan mail. That came with the price of being a famous model, he supposed.

His initiative had paid off once he made his way back to his room. He ran into Nathalie, whom was going over some sort of arrangements on her clipboard, as she normally was seen to be doing. Always busy, never relaxed. Always some sort of work that needed to be completed, it seemed.

"Good morning, Nathalie." Adrien greeted politely, as expected.

Nathalie seemed to do a double take from her notes, looking up, seeing Adrien, and then back at her notes, only to then process who it was whom had greeted her. She placed her pencil to the edge of the board, and held it by her side as she spoke to the young model. "Good morning, Adrien. I hope you slept well."

"Yeah, I did, thank you. Oh, just so you know, a friend of mine is going to be showing up later today, so if you could just let me know when they arrive, I'd appreciate it." Seeing as Nathalie could be rather stern and cold to what few visitors Adrien got, he felt it wise to inform the person whom answered the doors about the upcoming visit.

"Of course, Adrien. Can you describe the individual for me?"

"Blue hair, blue eyes. Bit shorter than I am. Very light freckles. Her names Marinette." Adrien made a gesture with his hands, roughly at about Marinette's height to give Nathalie a better idea of how tall she was. As he did this, he pulled up Marinette's contact information on his phone and showed Nathalie. "This girl."

"I'll be sure to inform you if she arrives." Nathalie said with a very light nod of the head, before she raised her clipboard again and began walking down the hall, her footsteps echoing with each step she took in the empty, cold hallway.

"Thanks." Adrien muttered, since she was already gone, and she wouldn't hear unless he raised his voice. She acted coldly and professionally to him. She always had done. It was her job. She wasn't here because she particularly wanted to be here. She wasn't here because she particularly cared about Adrien or about the work his father did. She was here because she needed to pay for food and bills at home. He knew that, but the blond model still deeply appreciated all the things she did for him. He had gotten away with the Camembert in foil trick, though. Perhaps she didn't notice, or was too busy to care. Regardless of the reason, he had gotten away with it, to which he let out a sigh of relief.

Once in his room again, unsurprisingly, Plagg was still sleeping. Watching his Kawmi for a few moments after shutting the door, and then looking at the Camembert wrapped in foil, Adrien decided to do a little test, letting a small smile spread across his face.

Unwrapping the Camembert, he left the foul-smelling cheese next to his Kwami, and waited, leaning against the wall, and watching his partner stir. He decided to give it ten seconds.

Three...

Two...

One...

Shooting his eyes open, Plagg was already in the air before he could even see anything, already searching for the aromatic scent. It barely even took him a few seconds before he was already next to the delicious substance. "Camembert..." Plagg muttered, dreamily, like he still didn't quite realize he was awake.

"Huh. I guess you _can_ smell Camembert in your sleep." Adrien said with a smirk on his face.

"What a perfect way to wake up!" Plagg sighed happily, his cheeks already stuffed with his favorite cheese.

"Don't get used to it. It's a one off." Adrien warned. "I need to talk to you about this visit of Marinette's."

"Still having romantic trouble?"

Adrien sighed. "No, Plagg. Well, yes, but no, that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about you. We haven't decided what we're gonna do with you. Marinnette cannot see you."

"So I'll hide in a drawer, big deal." His Kwami shrugged off the issue, while throwing his final piece of cheese into the air, and catching it in his mouth.

"You realize she's likely to be here for nearly ten hours, right Plagg?" Despite his frustration with his partner at times, not once had the Parisian wished genuine harm to come to the small magical creature. Last night he might have wanted to punch the small thing, but not out of malice. More out of frustration.

"Adrien, I'm a five thousand year old magical being, I can handle being bored for a few hours."

"Plagg, the last time I left you alone for a few hours, you ended up going through the storage boxes looking for Camembert while Stormy Weather attacked the city, and your excuse was you were trying to take a nap." Adrien reminded his small companion about their interactions on the day Stormy Weather had attacked. The day that had sparked the real beginning of his and Ladybugs adventures to save Paris from the Akuma, and from Hawkmoth. Sure, they'd fought Stoneheart, and other Akuma since then, but that day stood out to the young superhero as the day when Hawkmoth's efforts seemed to have tripled. Both in occurrence, and in violence.

"So maybe I do get a little bored sometimes."

"Im starting to think this homework visit was a very bad idea..." Adrien sighed. "Plagg, this is serious. If Marinette finds you here, that's gonna lead to a lot of hard to answer questions."

"So what do you suggest?" The Cat-like creature asked the Parisian boy, hovering just a few inches from his head.

"The balcony." Adrien said, turning in his heel and looking up at the walls and shelves filled with books and books, and more books. Having physical copies of books was somewhat of a rarity now, but Adrien had grown up around them, and he liked having something physical to hold in his hands. "Its out of the way, you'd be harder to spot, and you'd have something to do."

"What, read?" Plagg asked with a bored expression.

"The alternative is me locking you in a box for, at worst, ten hours."

With a reluctant sigh, Plagg nodded his tiny head. "Well, I suppose it _is_ better than sitting in the dark for so long..." In reality, the Kwami knew just how serious the situation was. He wasn't new to this sort of occurrence, and he was grateful to Adrien for even considering his feelings in the matter. Some of the previous holders of his miraculous hadn't bothered to ask his opinion. He wouldn't have fought against just being locked in a drawer, because he knew just how deeply in trouble he and his human partner would be in, but he appreciated being given the choice.

With a relieved sigh, Adrien nodded. "Okay, now all thats left... Is for Marinette to show up."

 _'And with any luck, I can figure out what the hell is going on with me.'_ Adrien added, silently.

* * *

Fire was the only thing Marinette could describe her blood as fire now. She felt like her blood was on fire, that her veins were carrying lava, and her bones were made of magma. Every single inch of her body was burning up, her skin felt like a cocoon, trapping the heat in, and suffocating her. Her normally pale skin was a dark red scarlet, and she could barely even feel her knees. This was the effect Adrien had in her.

And he wasn't even here. She had texted him, letting him know she was only a few minutes away, and her emotions had taken over since.

She found herself inching ever closer to the Agreste estate with increasing feelings hat conflicted against each other, and had resulted in what was essentially a small boxing match between her emotions, and currently, both sides were drawing. She felt excitement, dread, happiness, fear, joy, worry. Every positive was countered with a negative, and every negative was countered by a positive, and every positive was countered by a negative, and so on and so forth, until Marinette's stomach was filled to the brim with butterflies, and her head was dizzy, and her eyes were spinning.

She was going to see Adrien today. That in itself was enough to make her heart beat like a drum. But she was going to be helping him with homework? He was going to rely on her. That was enough to make her heart explode.

Her crush with the handsome, kind, and all in all, totally perfect golden haired, green eyed, pale skinned Parisian model seemed to only have gotten worse as time had gone on. Or better, depending on your perspective. She was able to at least hold a conversation with him now, but the reality was, it was taking every ounce of energy that she had to not start laughing in sheer embarrassment and collapse to the floor. She never felt happier, more energetic, more alive, than when around her crush, and never felt more dead than when she was alone.

But she was going to see her crush today. And she was going to spend a long time helping him with his work.

It had been a week since she had last seen him in person, and the days had just dragged on for her. The blunette girl had had so little interest in anything that was going on around her without Adrien there to help her find reason to be energetic. Oh, she had focused, she had written her notes, done her homework, done the work that she had been told to for each class, but it all just felt so much... Less than it normally did. So much... Less. Just less everything, really. She had been so bored with lessons. With school. With... Everything.

Even her patrols as Ladybug had been less than exhilarating. So little had gone on over the past week, she had been bored of her alternate personas work, which had certainly been a first. It wasn't often that you found yourself being bored of being a superhero.

Although, she was certainly worried about Chat Noir.

Every time he flirted with her, she was irritated by it. Every time he tried to get closer to her, she side-stepped it. Every time he made one of his terrible puns, she groaned at it.

It was funny how much she missed all of that once it had gone.

Combining it all was the showing signs that Chat wasn't up to his usual self. Personal issues, she was confident of that. He hadn't wanted to speak about it to Ladybug, and she had chosen to respect that. But it wasn't until she had gotten home that the idea that it might be due to her insistence that they kept their secret and civilian lives separate that Chat hadn't said anything. Even in his own clear exhaustion, upset and fatigue, he was prioritizing Ladybug's wishes above his own. It had honestly made her feel immensely guilty.

But that was all about to change!

"You're certainly happy, Marinette." Her Kwami, Tikki said from her slightly open purse. Tiny and red, Tikki blended in with her Human partners bag perfectly well. "And nervous. But mostly happy!"

As a Kwami, she and Marinette merged whenever Marinette needed to become the hero Paris knew as Ladybug. Due to this, Tikki often had a reasonably good idea of how her partner was feeling emotionally, and the previous night, she had sensed worry, upset, and anxiety. All directed towards Chat Noir. It was obvious, even without the literal merging, that Marinette cared for Chat Noir, even when outside of her superhero alter ego. Part of why she wanted to keep their identities a secret was also to protect Chat. He annoyed her to no end, that could never be mistaken. But so did her parents on occasion, and she still loved them.

So it was definitely a lovely change of pace to see Marinette happy as could be, if not emotionally terrified at the same time.

The two were at the main gate to the Agreste estate, and Marinette's hand was trembling and she had outreached for the buzzer. "I - I don't think I can do this Tikki."

"Why not?"

"What if I mess up on while helping Adrien and end up teaching him something wrong and then we get tested on it and he fails it because of me and then he starts to hate me for it and -"

Tikki sighed as Marinette started her nervous rambling habit, usually occurring whenever around Adrien, or a conversation regarding Adrien, Marinette would imagine a convoluted and unlikely scenario underlining the worst possible scenario. It was a nervous habit her partner still had, and it often crippled her ability to think rationally, unless pushed by another person.

That person today was Tikki. Checking to make sure no one was around, Tikki quickly hovered out of the purse, pressed the buzzer, and flew straight back into her hiding place in Marinette's purse.

"Tikki!"

The blunette girl had watched the whole thing happen with her jaw agate, and her eyes wide, all while stopping directly in the middle of her rambling. After staring at the buzzer for just a few seconds, Marinette let out a scream, and held up her bag in front of the buzzer, praying to God that it developed sentience and handled the conversation for her.

"You'll be fine, Marinette." Tikki reassured her with a comforting voice. "Remember; Adrien asked for your help because he trusts your judgement. He has confidence in you, have some confidence in yourself."

"But - But what if I get it wrong?..."

"I'm sure Adrien would prefer to have something to show tomorrow than nothing at all. But you're smart, Marinette. I'm sure that you'll do great!"

The amateur fashion designer had to smile at her Kwami. From her, she received far more confidence boosts than she could ever give herself. Whenever she was unsure of herself, her Kwami was right there to pick up her spirits.

"Hello?" A cold voice came through the buzzer, starling Marinette, whom jumped back a little. Most houses didn't have an entire buzzer system like this.

"U - Um! Hi - I - I mean, hello. M - My name is Marinette. I'm a friend of A - Adrien." Marinette mentally slapped herself over and over and over again for stuttering like an idiot. She was totally out of her comfort zone, and she was struggling to keep a coherent sentence. The other person on the other side of the buzzer must have taken her for an idiot. "H - He hasn't been to class all week... S - So I brought him the work, a - and was going to help him if that's okay..." She said, her voice trailing off as she ended her sentence, forcing an awkward smile. She wasn't even sure if she could be seen right now. Previously, a camera had jumped out of the wall and examined her face carefully before it had accepted her gift for Adrien on his birthday. After the attack by Simon Says, she assumed it had been damaged or broken while she was Ladybug, but she didn't outline the chance that they had smaller cameras installed around the area.

"Adrien has told me to expect you." The voice replied, and with that, the gates slowly slid back, granting Marinette access to the Agreste estate.

The young bakers child swallowed hard, and took a deep breath. Adrien was only a few steps way from her now. She bit her bottom lip, hard, and then forced herself to take the few steps needed to enter the estate. It took every ounce of her willpower to make those few steps. She felt her heart rate increasing rapidly once she reached the door. Pushing it open, she saw the hall of Adrien's home.

She had been here before, mainly as Ladybug, and only once, very briefly, as Marinette, but she had never really taken note of just how grandiose the entrance was. Covered, was the floor in triangular tiles, and the steps and railings painted a perfect white color, same as the balcony that lead to the second floor of the building. There was a black pattern on the floor of the foyer, and black streaks of marble rose horizontally up the walls. Along the ceiling, there were several long, cylinder shaped lampshades, which provided the light for the reception room, despite it being daylight. Atop the stairs, was a masterfully hand painted portrait of Adrien, and his father, the legendary Gabriel Agreste. Truly, that painting was a work of art. Each of the doors was covered in a black paint, all perfectly smooth and to perfection. Whomever had commissioned this room had been an absolute perfectionist, and whomever designed and created it had been an absolute master of their craft.

Marinette inspected this entire room, looking around for a few moments, before she heard a set of footsteps rapidly approaching her. Snapping her neck to the direction of the incoming taps, Marinette saw the usual receptionist that Adrien could often been seen with. A woman whom wore glasses, had a red streak in her hair, and seemed to always wear a frown on her face, like smiling would literally kill her. "Mrs. Marinette, correct?"

Finding herself stood rigid, Marinette replied formally, if not nervously. "Y - Yes ma'am!"

"Please wait here for just a moment while I inform Adrien you have arrived." The receptionist instructed, making her way up the steps, her footsteps echoing throughout the foyer.

Eventually, there was silence, and Marinette let out a sigh of relief.

She had been here barely a minute, and she already knew that Adrien had to have a hard life, living with people like this. She could only imagine what every day must be like, living like this.  
There was no way she could even begin to guess how much money this lobby cost alone, never mind the rest of the house. It was so masterfully crafted and designed, that it would probably make an average architect fall in love. The room itself illustrated the gap between her families income, and the fortune of a model like her crush. She felt somewhat inadequate, standing here, like she didn't belong here. Like she was an outsider, peering in to a world she didn't understand or fully comprehend.

"Marinette?"

That voice, warm, welcoming, and soft, music to her ears, like a symphony, Marinette gave her full, undivided attention to the figure whom the call for her name had come from, whom was now stood at the top of the steps.

Around him, the entire world seemed to fade away into soft pink and white mist, leaving only two people left, her, and Adrien Agreste. On his face, there was a perfect smile, and a sparkle in his eyes. He was happy to see her. Marinette would have panicked under any other circumstance, but she was absolutely certain of this. He was happy to see her. She couldn't be more certain of it. And she was ecstatic to see him too.

It wasn't until a few seconds later that Marinette realized she was staring at the Parisian model, and almost had a heart attack in her realization. Her eyes shot open, and everything in the world snapped back into reality. "A - Adrien!" She replied a bit louder than needed, but thankfully, not loud enough that someone could call her out on it.

The blond Parisian made his way down the stairs with a clear spring in his step, every movement he made graceful and deliberate. "It's good to see you." He said to her, with his genuine smile still intact.

"I - Um - It's good to see you too. A - Are you feeling better?" She asked, unsure of what else there was to say to the model, whom was now arms reach away from her. Being in such close proximity in itself would be enough to send her into supernova. The fact that she would be even closer to him for the vast majority of the day was enough to make her feel like an exploding red star.

"Much better." He replied with another smile. He sounded much better too, more energetic than he was the previous night, where he sounded like a dead man on his feet.

"That's good... Oh!" Marinette reached into her bag, remembering the entire reason she had come here in the first place. She pulled out Adrien's school work pad, and a list of notes. The work pad was the only thing Adrien had been expecting. Not a list of notes too.

"Whats with all these?" He asked, taking hold of the work pad and grabbing the notes with his free hand, making sure not to drop any. On the notes, were all sorts of basic scientific equations and notes, mathematical calculations, and historical dates and events.

"They're, um, my notes... From class." Marinette said, hesitantly. "I thought you might need them to, um, I don't know... Read after the work?" What Marinette was trying to get at, was that she thought Adrien might want to use the notes, not only to help with the homework, but also to help him memorize the work. The way she had phrased it, she had sounded like an idiot, and mentally smashed her head against a wall.

"Oh, I see." Adrien nodded, seeming to understand what Marinette was saying, to which the young girl sent a thank you to all the cosmic entities in existence for not letting her look like a moron in this situation. "Are you still okay with this? I mean, I'd get it if you wanted to go right now." Adrien added, sounding genuine and understanding, his smile not having gone anywhere.

"I - I um, its okay! I really don't mind!" Marinette was trying to act as cool, calm and collected as she possibly could, and was failing miserably. It was impossible for her to keep a calm attitude around this boy, no matter how hard she tried.

"Thanks." Her crush said with another bright, kind smile. His smile was so genuine, so warm, it just melted Marinette's heart. "Really. It means a lot."

* * *

The truth of the matter was, Adrien didn't even need any help with this homework whatsoever, and he felt bad for deceiving Marinette like that. With the amount of private tutelage he had received before even going to a public school, Adrien already knew most of this stuff like he knew how to pose for a photo.

What he really wanted was the figure out why his heart was currently beating like it was.

He had shown Marinette to his room where they would work, and she had been awestruck by the sheer size of it, even though he was used to such a large room. It being so large, for just himself, it felt empty most of the time. He had checked to make sure Plagg was where he said he was. On the balcony, hidden between some books. It was only the initial entrance of the blunette girl that Plagg had to hide, when Marinette did a full look around the room she found herself in, before she and Adrien buckled down and focused on their work. Afterwards, he would be pretty much free to read whatever it was that he wanted, provided he didn't make a huge noise out of it.

Adrien was the kind of person whom could mask his emotions well. He was able to hide when he was sad, or when he was over excited rather well, and he had his strict upbringing to thank for that. He was always expected to remain composed and calm, regardless of whatever situation was thrown at him, lest he make a fool of himself and his fathers name. Disappointment, anger, frustration, he was able to hide all of those emotions with perfect ease.

So he was able to hide the fact he was basically having a small heart attack right now incredibly well.

"You're a natural." Marinette said, complimenting Adrien, still red in the face for whatever reason. She was a good tutor, no question about it... But Adrien just didn't need one. He already knew what he was doing.

"Thanks." He replied with a smile. They had already finished two sets of the homework in the space of a couple of hours, twice as quick as they had predicted that it would take. Maths and Science already completed, the only two workloads the two of them had to complete were History and English.

"Are you sure you need me here?" Marinette asked, with a slight tease to her voice. As the time had gone on, she had become more comfortable with speaking to the young Parisian. She had been out of her element rather drastically, so she had needed some time to adjust. That was Adrien's theory, anyway.

"Definitely." He said, leaning back in his seat. "You're a great tutor."

Once again, Marinette's face went red, and her face shot back to the work pads in front of them. Whenever he complimented her, she had done that. "T - Thank you.."

On a personal level, Marinette seemed to be totally different than Ladybug. Ladybug was confident, outgoing, witty, sassy with Chat Noir, and took all her compliments with grace and in her stride. She was never afraid to voice her opinion, and act on what she believed to be the right choice. Intelligent and stubborn, determined and immensely creative. That was just a brief description about Ladybug.

"You know, I've missed being at school." The blond boy said, taking hold of his work pad. He got a look from Marinette, encouraging him to elaborate, so he did. "I mean, it took me so long to get father to allow me to actually go to a public school. I had to work so hard to prove to him I could do it. Private tutors, I aced everything they gave me, I did the best out of everyone at any photo-shoot, and I acted in such a dignified manner that was always expected of me. I proved to him that I could go to a public school, make real friends, like a normal kid our age."

Marinette listened. That was one thing she had over Ladybug. Not because Ladybug didn't want to listen to Chat Noir. But because she couldn't.

"Obviously my father still detested the idea." Adrien continued, remembering how he had had to sneak out of his home and run to the school that he himself had applied himself for to get there on the first day. "I went to school against his wishes. I got in a lot of trouble when I went home after the first day." He smirked. "I got in enough trouble with you with the whole 'Chewing Gum' incident, that day as well."

Embarrassed, Marinette looked at the floor, and felt her hands shaking at the memory. The first day she had met her crush, they had gotten off to a rocky start, thanks to Chloe. It wasn't until later on that the two of them mended their relationship, thanks entirely to Adrien's honesty and kindness.

It also marked the moment that Marinette fell in love with him.

"But this last week, back to all these photo-shoots, constantly posing, never having a moment to myself... I forgot just how much I missed going to school. How much I missed Nino. Alya." He turned to look at Marinette. "You."

Opposed to blushing, Marinette looked back at Adrien upon hearing those words, swearing she needed to hear that again. It felt like they were on the top of those steps again, on that rainy day, where her feelings for the handsome model first sprouted, and those embers that would soon become love first sparked in her heart.

"I missed it. I missed everyone. So, to be honest, I'm kind of looking forward to going back tomorrow." Adrien said with an awkward laugh.

Marinette was shy. She was awkward. She was clumsy. These were things everyone knew about her. It was practically common knowledge. But those who knew her better, deeper than that, knew more. She was kind hearted, to a fault almost. She had been completely willing to give up her free time to help Adrien here, with no obvious benefit to her, time she could have spent bettering her own work, or refining her talent for fashion design. She was honest and hardworking, and has a good nature.

What caught Adrien's eye however, was just how she listened. How she just would listen to him. How she was so friendly with him, how she went out of her way to smile at him, and speak to him. Chloe did that also... But Adrien was under no delusions as to Chloe's behavior. Marinette's was different. She was kinder. Genuine. He really got the sense that she actually cared...

Sometimes, even more so than Ladybug. _His lady._

It was so hard to explain, or to even comprehend. Even in his own head, Adrien couldn't make sense of it.

But he was happy he knew Marinette.

* * *

The work only took them another two and a half hours to complete. Far faster than either of them had predicted it would. Adrien's knowledge and Marinette's tutoring had resulted in them accomplishing everything way ahead of schedule.

Adrien had just finished writing the final sentence of his English work when Marinette's phone chimed, indicating it had received a text message. Adrien placed his pen on his work pad and leaned back in his chair once again, and stretched out, letting out a loud yawn as he did so, feeling his back click as it readjusted itself in accordance with his stretching.

"I have to go..." Marinette said, sadly, holding up her phone for Adrien to see. "My parents told me they want me home. Dinner time."

Adrien glanced at the messaged and frowned. "That's too bad. I just finished. We could have played some games or something for a while." He rose on his feet, and stretched again. "Come on, I'll walk you out." He offered, with a kind smile.

As the two of them approached the large door to exit the mansion, Adrien felt a tang of sadness. He honestly didn't want Marinette to go yet. He had liked having her around, and was upset that their time was at an end.

"Listen..." He said, awkwardly, just at the front door, before Marinette could leave. "Thanks for helping me out today. Really, I don't think I could have caught up without your help."

Marinette blushed and replied, quietly. "It - Its no problem... Let me... Know if you need help again..."

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Y - Yes..."

The two of them bid one another goodbye for the night, and Marinette left. The door shut with a loud clunk, and Adrien found himself alone once again, the empty building he lived in all his life feeling so large and menacing once more. He stood there for a few moments, contemplating for a moment, before he made his way to hid bedroom, where he was awaited by Plagg.

Priority number one for Adrien was getting his beating heart under control. He felt like it was about to burst from his chest with the force of a frag grenade. He clutched his chest where his heart was located, struggling to breathe.

"Don't tell me you really _are_ falling for that girl." Plagg commented. Adrien couldn't tell if he was being serious, genuinely disgusted, or if he was teasing him.

"I... Don't know. My heart's beating, and I can't think straight... Its like being around Ladybug... But... Better..." Adrien tried to convey these feelings he had, very poorly, to the Kwami. "I - I can't explain it, Plagg."

"It's enough to make me vomit..." His Kwami sighed.

While annoyed with his Kwami's attitude, Adrien let it slide. "Plagg, I need a favour."

Adrien felt like he had to be sure. He needed to speak to Marinette again. He needed to speak to her, to confirm what he was feeling. He felt a compulsion to be around her, a longing to see her, even when she just left.

To do this, he needed Plagg.

"You had me stay up on that balcony for the last few hours. I'm gonna need a _lot_ of persuading to do you any more favors." The small magical being told his human partner, deadpanned serious.

" _Unlimited_ Camembert requests _all day_ tomorrow." Adrien offered, folding his arms, and playing his ultimate trump card, without missing a beat. "However much you want, whenever you want. I'm completely serious." He added, making sure Plagg knew he wasn't messing around with him.

" _Deal_!" The black Kwami said, his eyes wide and sparkling with joy. There were few tasks that Adrien could ever come up with for him in which unlimited Camembert was not worth it. "What do you need?"

Slamming his fist into the air, Adrien said two simple words.

"Claws out."

* * *

 **Welp, this story was better received than I anticipated, so I'm glad I decided to write it for you. I'm getting my spark back for writing, guys, thanks to me taking a break from my regular works, and I'm thoroughly enjoying crafting this one.**

 **Whats interesting to me is that this story's concept hasn't been done before, at least from what I've seen, and that's honestly bizarre to me. I didn't have this down as a particularly original concept, but there you go.**

 **Next chapter, we're gonna get to the good stuff. I've rearranged my chapters in my head, and I've got some ideas on how to progress this story. I think you'll like some of the touches I have in mind. I like them at least, and I hope you guys will!**

 **You can follow me on my Wattpad, and also my YouTube, both links of which are in my account profile description.**

 **And I hope you enjoyed this chapter guys, and I will indeed, see you, in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	3. Acts of Impulse

Essentially skipping her way home, Marinette could not find herself in a happier mood. Sad that she was going home, yes, but that aside, she could practically sing all her way home. She was essentially high on her own joy right now, not caring for much else that was going on in the world around her. A few people stared at her and gave her some funny looks. They could stare all they liked as far as the beaming blunette could care. It just could not upset her mood at all.

Hearing what Adrien had said, that he had missed her - Her - Had done wonders for her. It had made her heart leap, and her face positively pink in the face, even when walking home. Just the memories of what had happened were enough. Just being near Adrien had been enough. She had her bag and was holding it tightly against her chest, with such a bright smile, that it was hard for her not to close her eyes out of blissful joy.

To Marinette, it felt like for the first time, despite having known the Parisian for close to a year, that they seemed to be considered friends, or more accurately, the first time Adrien had seemed to consider her a friend. She didn't know if this had been a recent development of his, or if he had felt that way about her for a long time, but the thought of it filled her with glee.

Even the dark clouds gathering above Paris couldn't spoil her mood now. Rain was to be expected in but a few moments, but to be totally honest, Marinette couldn't care less about something so trivial.

"He missed me~!" The blunette girl whispered to herself as she made her way through the streets of Paris with a happy spring in her steps, feeling like she could just burst from her happiness.

"Awwwwwwah... You sound happy." Came Tikki's yawn-filled voice from her human partner's bag. She had chosen to take a nap while Marinette and Adrien had done their work, and only now was stirring awake. "I'm taking it went well?"

Marinette just responded with a happy giggle to herself. "Yep!"

Taking a less used alleyway, to reduce the risk of being spotted by people on the main streets, and risking Tikki being spotted, along with looking completely insane, the young superhero explained to her tiny Kwami what had happened, all with a huge grin on her face, and excitement and giddiness in her voice. Tikki listened intently, nodding and smiling, not speaking during her recollections, but not discouraging her either. The tiny Kwami was an excellent listener.

"It sounds like it was an exciting time." She commented, once Marinette had finished what she had to say.

"For a homework session." Marinette said with a small laugh, which she shared with the Kwami. She sighed once her laughter had faded, and looked up at the Parisian sky. The dark grey clouds were what Paris saw, but she saw a bright blue sky. Her whole world just seemed brighter, just by spending time with Adrien, after being apart from him for so long.

"Have you thought about telling him your feelings yet?"

At that point, Marinette froze, and stopped dead in her tracks, staring at her Kwami, like she was just seeing it for the first time. Her smile dropped, and in a mere few seconds, her face went a dark scarlet.

"A - Are you crazy?!" She asked, almost yelling at her Kwami. If she had been in an organised street, she would have been given some odd looks, that much was a certainty. "He - Adrien would never - I - I'm so plain compared to some of the people around! He - I - I can't!" Marinette said, panicking, like she was stood right next to her crush. "It - It's not that I don't want to! I - I do, but - Every time I see him - I - I freeze up!" She sighed, calming herself down. "I'm plain, clumsy, and I can't even string a coherent sentence around him on a good day without sounding like a lunatic..."

"Not every girl in Paris is Ladybug, protector of the innocent bystanders~!" Tikki chimed. "You'll have to tell him sometime if you want anything to happen. Besides, I think he really likes you!"

"I - Its not like I can just go up to him and say, 'Oh hello, handsome boy, and love of my life, for future reference, I happen to be Ladybug!'"

"My point was, you can, and do things that no one else in all the world can do, Marinette. You're not plain at all." Tikki said gently, reassuring her human partner the best she could.

"Thanks, Tikki..." Marinette said weakly, with a smile, plastered in as beat she could.

"Hey, kid."

Marinette turned to see a man stood about seven meters behind her, right next to a dirty turquoise dumpster. The man looked to be in his early to mid twenties, and was not even slightly clean. Dirt clung to both his clothing and his skin, which gave him a dirty Caucasian appearance. He wore a now brown baggy trench coat. In a better time, that trench coat could have been a navy blue, or a brighter brown color. Now, it was the same color as soil. The trousers he wore were no better, perhaps once having been a trendy set of blue jeans, now ruined with the passage of time, and neglect of care. He was either homeless, or some sort of drug user, of this there couldn't be any sort of doubt. His face was covered in a long, thick, unshaven bared, that came a few centimeters from his chin. In addition, he also had thick, filthy, messy hair that wound up just above his ears, and atop it, was a red hat, dirty, but certainly not as bad as the trench cost or jeans, as there was still some color in this article of clothing. Marinette couldn't even tell the color of his eyes from this distance, they seemed to be covered by the shadows that his brow caused. He was a man whom had seen better days.

In an act of clever and quick thinking initiative, Marinette quickly turned to her bag and said, "Ill have to call you back, Tikki, someones asking me for something!" She then closed her bag, making it look like she had been on her phone the entire time. "Uh, yes sir? Can I um, help you?"

"Yeah, kid, you can."

Marinette assumed that the man was homeless, and was going to ask for some money to help him purchase a meal to help him get though the day. She wasn't a stranger to seeing this sort of thing, in a city as large as Paris, and she often did have the spare change to give them at least a Euro or two.

What Marinette hadn't been expecting was this man to procure a large, shiny butchers knife.

She could see her own shocked face in the side of the blade, amazingly gleaming for someone whom had so much dirt on their person. He half the blade upright, it clearly and visibly sharp. This weapon would have no issues slicing through flesh.

"You can give me that bag."

Was she being mugged? The thought only now just occurred to her now on-catch-up brain. She clutched her bag tightly. There was no way in hell she was about to give this up. Not only did this bag contain everything that she required on a day-to-day basis, her books, her work pad, her phone, it also contained Tikki, her Kwami, and more importantly, her friend. If she went, there goes Ladybug for the entire city, but most importantly, there goes her friend.

Before meeting her Kwami, the old Marinette probably would have handed the bag over without question, and hoped she would get out of this situation with her skin in one piece.

This Marinette however, turned around and ran, clutching hold of her bag as tightly as she could.

"Get back here, kid!" The man yelled, and Marinette could hear his footsteps closely behind her. She was younger, but he was taller, and had longer legs, and was still relatively young himself. It wouldn't be hard for him to keep up with the teenage girl.

Logic told Marinette to just throw her purse at him. That was what he was after, that was obvious. He wanted the money that was in her purse, and anything else he could sell for extra cash. If she threw her purse, he would leave her alone.

But she refused. She rejected her own logical conclusions, and made her way through the alleyway at her top speed. She was brave. She was strong. She was Ladybug, the hero of Paris. There was no way she was going to let a mugger get the best of her.

"All I want is the purse!" She heard the mugger yell from behind her. "Give me that, and you can go!"

"Is that it?"

Both the mugger and Marinette stopped upon hearing a third voice into the whole situation. A voice familiar to Marinette, that her legs simply just stopped working, and allowed her to skid on the ground, and her head automatically tilted upwards, completely independent of her own whims. Fortunately for her, the same could be said about the mugger, whom seemed to watch, less in awe like Marinette was, and more in fear of his own safety.

Atop a building, standing upon the edge, was a figure covered head to toe in leather, or the closest substance to leather that you could get without it actually being leather. Marinette recognized the figure immediately.

"Chat Noir?"

Akin to this true, overconfident and showing-off attitude, Chat Noir did a forward leaping double back-flip off the building, before straightening himself out, and landing roughly three meters from the two people staring at him. He was moving out of impulse, in reality. He had watched this entire situation evolve from the get go. He had been on his way to see Marinette in her home, but had stumbled across this situation here. He hadn't thought the blunette girl was in any danger until he was the knife this man was brandishing, and after that, Chat went into automatic defensive mode.

"You just want the _purr_ -se?" He asked, with a grin that mocked this mugger, very clearly. "Well, I guess that's _purr_ -fectly alright then! Here, just let me _paw_ -cure it for you!"

Despite the danger, Marinette could almost groan at his puns, had she not missed them so much. He was feeling better, apparently. That set her mind at ease.

"I-I don't want any trouble!" The mugger said suddenly, taking a few steps back. It was obvious he recognized the skill and strength of Chat Noir, and was intimidated by the superhero.

"You just tried to rob my friend." Chat spat, rather than speaking. There was a rather distinct tone of hatred and anger as he said this. Boy, was he _pissed_. Marinette had to wonder, had she seen him this straight up angry before? His oblong pupils had narrowed down in the mugger, and his teeth were gritted, showing his rage. He produced his baton, and extended it, and span it around his person, leaving a small light-trail from wherever it was just a few seconds ago, spinning it around with skill and speed, and walked in between the mugger and Marinette, so that the mugger wouldn't be able to hurt the blunette girl he was defending. "You made a big, big, _big_ mistake here, pal."

At this moment, the dirt-covered mugger realized his chances of talking his way out of this, and getting away if he ran, had just gone to zero, so in his last act of defiance, last possible chance for escape, he plunged straight for Chat Noir with impressive speed.

Using the Enhanced Reflexes his miraculous gave him, Char was able to slide to the side, dodging this attack, and then, with an overhead swing, brought his baton down on the mugger's hand with a hefty whack, knocking the blade out of the muggers hand. He then stepped back, like he was about to do a combination of pitching a baseball, and strike a home-run, Chat brought his baton behind his own head, and then swung it, aiming for this mans head.

The mugger was able to avoid this however, with some high speeds of his own. He had grown up on the streets, and this wasn't his first fight. He grabbed his knife on the floor again quickly, and made a swipe for the young superhero, catching just underneath his rib-cage. A spray of crimson blood came out, but it was only a small amount of liquid. Chat didn't even notice he had been caught. The blade had only caught one or two layers of skin, akin to a paper-cut.

Chat stepped back, avoiding the swipe, and then launched a roundhouse rick to the muggers head, which caught him on the left side of his head, sending him tumbling back.

Closer to Marinette.

"Oh _crap_." Chat said as he realized what he's done. "Marinette, move!"

Before she even had the chance, a knife was brought just an inch away from her throat, stopping her in her tracks. Seeing the advantage a hostage would give him, the mugger tried his final play.

Marinette stared at the knife, in shock more than anything. How the hell had she allowed this to happen? Why had she not run? She had known for a _fact_ , her staying here would be absolutely nothing but a _hindrance_ to Chat Noir. But she had just stayed, wanting to see the fight that went down. Wanting to make sure Chat was okay.

"Alright, cat, drop your weapon!" He yelled, grabbing hold of Marinette, and keeping the knife close to her throat.

The black leather-like superhero gritted his teeth. "Damn it." He cursed at himself. He'd been careless. _Foolish_. He hadn't finished this quickly enough. Anger had stopped him from thinking clearly. And now, Marinette was a hostage.

He could call the muggers bluff. He knew he wouldn't actually do it. If he did, then the mugger would have know there was nothing stopping Chat Noir from throwing him off the Eiffel Tower after beating him within an inch of his life. This _was_ a bluff.

But he refused to even risk it. This was Marinette. This was his friend. This was a talented fashion designer. This was the person whom had been playing with his heartstrings, for reasons beyond his comprehension. This was the person who gave up their one day off school to help Adrien Agreste, with no benefit to herself. This was the person who was kind to everyone, went out of her way to help those who needed it, and whose smile seemed to make his world a bit brighter.

He wasn't even slightly willing to risk losing her like that, even with a 99.99% chance of success.

Bitterly, but complying, he placed his baton on the floor in front of him, and kicked it out of reach, and placed his hands in the air, showing he had no weapons at his disposal. He glared at the mugger in anger. He was a coward, hiding behind someone who was innocent in this entire affair to begin with. He had singled her out because she looked weak. Because she was easy prey. Because he was nothing but a _coward_.

"Chat..." Marinette watched, wide eyed, as Chat Noir did as was commanded of him. She wasn't sure if she felt touched, or shocked more. Even she knew this was a bluff. Dealing with situations like this as Ladybug, she had been able to call out criminals who had done this many times. She knew this mugger wasn't prepared to become a murderer. It was the reason why she wasn't actually scared of the situation. And she knew Chat knew it was a bluff too.

So... Why was he giving up? Was it because... He didn't want to risk her safety?

Suddenly, a surge of anger swelled within Marinette. She acted on impulse, but she acted quickly, and with force. She shot her head back, hitting the muggers face with the back of her skull, causing his head to shot back, and while this happened, she slammed her right elbow into the muggers abdomen, winding him, making his weapon drop. She took this opportunity to throw herself to the ground, out of the way of the muggers reach.

Chat Noir's reaction had been just as fast. He leaped for his baton, and extended it as quickly as it would go, slamming into the muggers face, and pushing him against a wall - More like slamming him against it - And then, before the mugger had time to react, Chat slammed his baton into the side of the muggers head at close range, knocking him out completely cold.

"Princess!" Chat's attention shot straight back to Marinette without missing a beat. He ran to her, and helped her up. Her clothes were now dirty and soaked, but she was unharmed. "Are you alright? Anything hurt?" He asked, for good measure.

"Yeah..." She said, nodding. "Yeah, I'm fine... But... Chat, you're bleeding!"

Chat Noir had to raise an eyebrow at this. "I am?" He checked across his body, only finding the cut after a few seconds of patting up and down his chest, only knowing there was a cut due to the red liquid attaching itself to his hand. He looked at it, and then pressed down on the wound. It didn't hurt. "I'm fine. He must have just cut me a little. I'm more concerned about you, Princess. That was a scary situation."

"I don't scare easily, you know that." Marinette replied with a sassy edge to her voice, but she was thankful her partner hadn't gotten too badly hurt. His injury must have been far more minor than it had initially looked. Despite this, her face was still a bit red.

"Either way, I don't like the idea of you walking back home on your own after this just happened to you." Chat told her. Moving quickly, he acquired some nearby garbage, and made a sort of improvised set of handcuffs, restraining the unconscious mugger, and kicked him out into the main street. The police would take care of it from there.

He then quickly grabbed hold of Marinette, unexpectedly. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her in close to him, creating a situation in which their faces were barely even a few inches away from one another

The blunette girl hadn't been expecting this, so she offered no resistance. She hadn't been this close to her cat-themed superhero before. Ladybug had, but she certainly hadn't. They had done this once, during the incident with the Evilustrator, Chat Noir had done this fairly often when she was Ladybug, and there was no mistaking the sly motivations that he had had in those occurrences and, hell, she had _kissed_ Chat Noir as Ladybug, so what was it about this situation that was surprising her?

 _'He's warm._ ' Marinette thought, not noticing her heart rate had increased. ' _Oh my God, he's warm.'_

"Hope you aren't afraid of heights." Chat said with his toothy grin as he looked up. Extending his baton as high as it would go, and holding onto it, he and Marinette found themselves above many of the buildings in Paris, acquiring an honestly, beautiful sigh of the French capital. The darkness that the clouds brought in had caused all the streetlights to light up. There were still many cars going all over the place, and they had their headlights on too, combining them with the lights on in the buildings, the entire city was lit up like a computer set up. A few drops of rain started falling, and Marinette could swear she heard Chat hiss at those small drops of rain that landed on him initially.

The only issue that she had with this view was that it was Chat Noir she was having to rely on not dropping her. As Ladybug, she could rely on her yo-yo in case her superhero partner messed up. Without it, she didn't quite feel as secure. She trusted Chat, absolutely... But trust was one thing, guaranteeing ones safety while about a hundred meters in the air was quite another.

"Your place is the bakery, right? The one at 12 Gotlib street?" Chat asked, scanning around. The house was already in view, and it wouldn't have taken Marinette five minutes to get there on foot.

"Y-Yeah." The young girl said. Her arms had wrapped themselves around Chat's neck as a form of additional grip to make sure she didn't fall, and she wasn't sure of she loved or hated how warm she felt right now. "Y-You know, I could walk there. It's really not that far."

"Yeah, I know." Chat said, his grin appearing once again.

As he said this, Marinette felt a lurch in her stomach as the whole world slanted slightly. It took her a few seconds to catch on, watching the lights leave a small trail as she whole world began to slant, and the wind hitting her in the face, before she realized.

They were falling, right towards her house.

"But where's the fun in _that_?"

Chat Noir moved around Paris via two means : By using the Enhanced Agility and Reflexes his miraculous gave his physical body. This usually was enough for him. He could scale the entire Eiffel Tower with these enhancements in a matter of minutes. In fact, he had done that, several times, the most recent one to memory being his and Ladybug's fight with Volpina.

However, for some reason, whenever he needed to go a particularly large distance, he would use his extending staff to gain as much height as possible, and then fling himself at his intended target, aiming to give himself as much air-time as possible. Ladybug could not figure out, for the _life_ of her, why he chose to do this, but, she had a fairly good idea.

Because he found it fun.

"Yahoo!"

"Aaaaaaah!"

Two very different emotions and reactions filled the Parisian air as Chat and Marinette fell towards to earth, Chat enjoying this free-falling excitement feeling in his stomach, and Marinette despising it, having no way to secure her safety without her yo-yo. She desperately, desperately wished to be able to go back in time and run when Chat was fighting the mugger, so she could transform into Ladybug, and not have to deal with this right now.

At roughly 150 feet, Chat Noir kicked on his staff, launching both him and Marinette into the sky. He performed a barrel flip in mid air, fully aware that he was showing off at this point, before landing, completely unharmed, while holding Marinette close, so she wouldn't be harmed by the fall either. They had landed on the roof of her home, with barely a sound from their landing, like a cat.

"See, wasn't that far faster? And not to mention, much more fun!" Chat said with his grin still intact.

Marinette wasn't honestly sure if Chat Noir was completely insane or not at this point. "I-I think I just developed a fear of heights. And falling. And of _you_ , Chat." She said this, but she was keenly aware of just how close the two of them were. Her arms were still wrapped around his neck, tighter than necessary, which was any necessity at all at this point, and Chat's arm was still firmly around her waist, holding her body close. Her face had gone red when she realized this, but she put up no resistance. Why, she could not fathom.

"Me-Ouch!" Chat said, acting hurt. "You wound me, Princess, far deeper than any knife." He took a second to grad his staff as it fell towards the pair of them, and re-equipping it to his belt. This hand, his left one, now remained free, at his side, but his right hand didn't move from Marinette's waist.

"Silly cat." She muttered, quietly. "Is it - Is it hurting at all?" She asked, referring to the cut he received just a few minutes prior. She knew he said it didn't hurt, but, she thought it might have torn open more during the flip or the fall, or... Whenever else it could have happened.

"So you do actually care." He smirked, like he had won a victory. "I told you, Princess, it's fine. It's not even a flesh wound."

Marinette sighed loudly, and rested her head into Chat's chest. He was so warm, it actually almost scared her, like he was on fire or something. His heat practically fueled her own heat. Why in the world was she feeling warm like this?

"I... I suppose I should say thanks..." She muttered again. "You know... For helping me back that and all..." She was expecting a smug wisecrack from the hero she had her arms around.

She didn't get that though.

"I'm just glad you're alright." Chat replied, brutally honestly. "I don't want to imagine you getting hurt."

The blunette couldn't help but look up at the hero. His toothy smile now had been replaced with a genuine smile, a real one, filled with warmth and sincerity. His oblong pupils were ever so very lightly dilated in his shining green eyes. There wasn't a single trace of his jokes, or his self-gratifying attitude that he often had. He was full of pure, unrequited care for the girl he was holding right now.

Really, it didn't make too much sense. Exactly how many meetings had these two - Marinette and Char Noir - had? Three, four? And those were limited at best, the two of them mostly restricted to sharing a few lines of a conversation before time or occurrence required one or the other to run off. Why would he care for someone he knew so little of? Then again, was it fair for her to say something like that? How well did she honestly know Adrien?

Thinking of Adrien, this whole situation should not be happening. Just being like this felt like a betrayal of Adrien, and yet, Marinette could not find the energy to move. She felt happy here. Content. Relaxed. Other such words, that she couldn't figure out, because her head was in a daze right now. How long had she known Chat now? A year. Roughly as long as she had known her blond crush. The two of them were close - When she was Ladybug, at least. She cared for his safety, and he cared for her.

But the tenderness here was for Marinette, not Ladybug. It was genuine, gentle tender concern.

Marinette never did figure out why she did what she did next. She shouldn't have done it, she knew that much. There was no real reason to, either. Maybe it was due to how thankful she was that Chat had saved her. Maybe it was due to the fact that her body was still raging with adrenaline. Maybe it was due to her being near Adrien so long, and the giddy feelings she always had after seeing him that she still nurtured. The same thing had happened hundreds of times between the two when she was Ladybug.

Not during one of those times, did she even slightly feel compelled to kiss Chat Noir.

She acted out of pure impulse. The two of them looked at one another, their faces somewhat close already. The tenderness that was between the two of them was genuine and real. Chat Noir had a smile on his face, genuine and gentle. He was warm. So, so warm. And although he had hold of her waist, he wan't rough with her. He was soft, and rather affectionate with her.

For reasons she could never understand, she used her arms that were wrapped around his neck to pull her closer to him, and standing on her tip-toes, to reach his general height.

At this point, Chat Noir figured out what was going on, but Marinette still hadn't realized she was doing this. The cat-like heroes eyes shot open. Adrien was used to this, and that was what surprised him. How many times had some girl whom claimed to have a crush on him, but was really some fort of fan girl, tried to do this? How many times had Chloe tried to do this? It was the fact he offered no resistance that surprised him.

Compelled by forces that she couldn't even recognize, Marinette pressed her lips against Chat Noir's. Chat's eyes were wide open out of sheer shock and disbelief, but he quickly accepted the kiss, and returned it. Her lips were soft and warm, and she tasted so sweet, he would have had a hard time refuting anyone whom kissed like this. He felt his own heart thud like a hammer against his rib-cage. It was the first kiss he had had in his life - That he remembered, anyway - And he immediately yearned for more. He placed his free hand on Marinette's soft, smooth cheek, as the two of them held that position for a while, occasionally breaking their kiss, only to return to it a few seconds later.

It took a few moments before Marinette realized what the hell she was doing. _'What am I doing? What - Oh my God!'_

Her eyes shot open, wide open, and pushed herself away from an understandably confused and surprised Chat Noir, as she hid her now blood red face in her palms, praying to God that she was dreaming. Would this be worse as a dream? She had no idea, she just wanted to be somewhere else entirely right now. Anywhere else. Anywhere.

"M-Marinette?" She heard the Cat superhero ask her name gently, sounding slightly out of breath himself. He didn't pressure her, but he let her know he was there.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God." Marinette's heart was skyrocketing, her mind was racing, and her blood was pumping. Everything was going by in fast forward, and she was struggling to remember what had just happened a mere twenty seconds ago. "Oh my God, Chat, I'm so, so, so, so, so, _so_ sorry!" She practically bowed in apology, sweating and nervous like never before. Standing next to Adrien would bring her more calm feelings. This was like being stood next to a sentient fire.

"I-It's fine." Chat said, trying to calm her down. Smirking, he placed a finger on his chin and winked at her. "Not a lot of people can resist this beautiful face." He joked, trying to lift Marinette's spirits. When he saw that this didn't work, he placed a hand on her shoulder sympathetically. "Honestly, it's fine. Don't worry about it."

Marinette was just so, totally, completely embarrassed. She had kissed Chat before - But she could live with the previous kiss because it had been to save him from Dark Cupid, to capture an Akuma, and he hadn't remembered it, thank God. But she had just kissed him as her civilian self, and he remembered it perfectly well. She couldn't hide behind a mask, couldn't deny it ever happened. She wanted to crawl into a ball and never come out.

"Oh my God, I'm so dumb, I'm so sorry!" He kept saying to herself, her blush only staying with her for longer. The raindrops that hit her face practically evaporated on contact with her skin, and Chat could swear he was seeing literal steam come from her body. Oh God, what would Adrien think if he found out? He'd hate her. She wanted to cry, and small tears were forming in her eyes.

"I-It's not like I'm gonna go bragging to anyone!" Chat said, trying to find the cause of her embarrassment. "It really isn't that big a deal, but I promise you, this won't go past either of us! I -" At the worst possible time, a sickening sound filled the air around them. A constant beeping, causing even the flustered Marinette to look up. Chat's miraculous was warning him about his imminent transformation back to his civilian self.

"You've gotta be _kidding_ me!" Chat yelled at his ring, in a combination of anger and disappointment. He had to wrap things up here, fast. "Look, Marinette, I -"

"Y-You should go." The blunette girl said, finally look at Chat, her face still scarlet however. "D-Don't worry, I'll be okay. Y-You should just go before you change back."

He hated it, but Chat knew Marinette was right. He was taking a huge risk by staying here. Even if, theoretically, he left it until one minute, that still left him in a very unusual area for him to be 'visiting'. He'd likely stand out if he just sprung up from absolutely nowhere. He snarled at that knowledge. "Damn it." He glanced back at the blushing girl, then back at his miraculous. Then back at Marinette, and then back at his miraculous. "Aaargh... Just - Just don't be stupid." He told her. "I mean, don't do anything stupid that we'd both regret. I promise, this is between us.

Marinette nodded quickly, dark scarlet. "Thank you." She needed him to leave, now, away from her. She could hardly even cope with the shame she was currently feeling, and yet, that was combined with the and fact she couldn't bring herself to regret the kiss. So much internal struggle, she couldn't make sense of it. She needed Chat out of here.

"Stay safe, Princess." Chat told her, before he leaped onto the next roof, and made his way from the flustered girl.

And then, Marinette found herself alone, accompanied only by a few occasional raindrops, her wide open eyes, her hands above her chest, and her own, beating heart.

* * *

Adrien's heart refused to finally calm down.

It had been going at the speed of a bullet train for the last few minutes, and it was making it immensely difficult for him to breathe. He hadn't been able to keep up his usual, cool persona as Chat Noir thanks to his raging heartbeat, and even as Adrien, he was struggling to calm himself down.

How had this happened? He had just gone to talk to Marinette - Talk - As Chat Noir. At no point had a kiss been involved in that plan. And the thing that surprised him the most?

He really, really enjoyed it. He wasn't sure if that was wrong, to enjoy a kiss from anyone other than his Ladybug, but he could not deny it, nor would he.

He really enjoyed kissing Marinette.

"Urgh." Plagg commented form his perch on Adrien's shoulder. "This better be some _good_ Camembert you promised me. If I'd known _that_ was gonna go the way it did, I wouldn't have gone with you."

"How can you possibly be thinking about Camembert right now?!"

"Mostly because you promised me unlimited Camembert if I did you this favor. And secondarily, because this whole little thing you have with Marinette isn't really my problem."

Adrien rolled his eyes. "Gee, thanks for the help, Plagg."

"Hey, you never said you planned to start making out with her, so don't complain to me, Adrien."

"We did _not_ make out!" Adrien practically yelled, and he had to pray to all the various Gods that no one heard him. He seemed to be lucky. Stupidly lucky. "We just... Kissed..."

"I know. Urgh." Plagg said with revulsion. "What is the human obsession with that? Cheese is far, far, _far_ less complicated."

"She - She's the one who kissed me, not the other way around." Adrien reminded his Kwami. "Does - Does she like me?"

"She _might_ have a thing for Chat Noir." Plagg reminded his human friend. "All bets are off when it comes to you."

"But I _am_ Chat Noir."

"She doesn't know that."

Adrien was really starting to hate it when Plagg was right, but he had to concede, his Kwami was right. Would she have kissed him if she had known he was Adrien Agreste? Would she... Have liked it?

He knew he had liked it. He blushed once again at the thought.

"So now what are you gonna do, Mr. Lover-Man?" Plagg asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm at the nickname he had just given Adrien.

Adrien didn't even really need to think about what he wanted to do. He already knew before he had even been asked.

He wanted to see her again.

* * *

 **I am... Enjoying writing this way too much.**

 **How you doing guys! Another update from me. I'm writing these out like a damn ballot, huh? It's so refreshing to write something other than Pokemon, It's given me ideas and I've got plenty of those to implement into this story, so don't worry guys, this story is going places.**

 **fun fact, that I actually found fairly amusing, this story was actually made to help boost my Wattpad account. Instead, its boosted my account, the account hat has literally no mention of Miraculous Ladybug before this story. that really tickles me for some reason. I'm enjoying writing this story, and I'm hoping that you guys are enjoying reading it.**

 **A lot of the inspiration for this chapter, and this fanfic as a whole, came from one called Heartstrings, which I recommend you go read if you haven't already, because it's freaking magnificent. It's a masterpiece of a story, And I've re-read it like, five times.**

 **As always, you can find my YouTube and Wattpad in my Profile for more stuff from me.**

 **And I'll see you in the next chapter of whatever it is, I do indeed, decide, to make next. See ya!**


	4. Torn Between Two

Her accursed heartbeat refused to allow Marinette more than an hour and a half's worth of sleep. Throughout the entire night for the past year, she would hold onto a pillow and hug it tightly, and imagine herself being held by Adrien. This warm image always helped her drift off to sleep, always with a smile on her face.

She tried to do the same thing the previous night, but, not of her own accord, she kept reliving the moment when she kissed Chat Noir.

Echoing and echoing throughout her memories, Marinette had been unable to sleep, her face burning up in embarrassment. She still couldn't quite believe she'd done that. Her impulses had made her do it, compelled by reasons she would never comprehend.

Holding onto her pillow even tighter, she buried her head in it and kicked her legs randomly underneath her sheers. "Nooooooooo..."

Regardless of how much she wanted to regret it, to hate it, she couldn't bring herself to, and it was starting to annoy her. It was her own fault, she knew that, but still, she was so... She didn't even know what at this point. She was a combination of anger and excitement, weirdly. She couldn't even start to describe it.

There had been such a rush when she did it. A rush of adrenaline and dopamine that gave her energy, and dulled her usually nervous and shy personality. It had just been her and Chat. And she couldn't deny it.

She _liked_ it.

And that made everything worse.

Was she betraying Adrien by kissing Chat? She felt like she had betrayed her year-long crush, and it made her feel sickeningly disloyal. But the two of them - To Marinette's displeasure - Were not dating as such, so, she could file the kiss under _'Before Adrien_ ', right? That was an easy solution to this complicated problem.

So why did it feel like she'd be lying?

* * *

Arriving at the steps to the school, Marinette struggled to even keep her eyes open. The lack of sleep, the warmth of spring, the walk it took to get here, she was certain that she'd pass out before she even got to the doors of the school. She was totally exhausted, there really was no other word for it.

"Marinette!" Her ears picked up when she heard her name being called, and her head turned to see her best friend, Alya, walking towards her with a wave and her usual smile. Normally Marinette would run up and hug her as their usual morning greeting, whenever she wasn't late.

She lacked the energy to do that today, so instead, she put on a smile, and offered a wave. "Morning, Alya."

"Girl, you look completely worn-out. Are you okay?" Her friend asked, inspecting Marinette's face, noticing the fatigue on her face as it was. In a moment, a sly smirk appeared on her face, and Marinette already knew exactly what Alya was going to say. "Was -"

"No, Adrien was _not_ involved." The blunette girl shot down her tan-skinned friend rapidly, her face dark red at the mere insinuation. It had been someone else who had been involved though, her thoughts reminded her. "J-Just... Not enough sleep."

"You don't seem to get s lot of sleep these days." Alya commented, with a look on her face like she was trying to deduce Marinette's double life. Of course, Alya was a reporter at heart, and she had been trying to figure out who Ladybug and Chat Noir were ever since they showed up on the scene. She wasn't pushy, like some were, because she still respected the duo of Paris. Some people tried to grab the two of them and pry their masks off in the early days, which had come to no avail. Alya hadn't. She was a huge fan of both of them, and wanted them to reveal their identities to her when they were ready. But that didn't stop her from making theories, and sometimes, even claims.

All Marinette could do was laugh awkwardly. "What can I say? I was a bit focused on..." _'Kissing Chat Noir_.' "...A uh, design I was working on! I guess I just, lost track of time!" That was believable. It wasn't any secret that Marinette loved to design anything in the fashion scene. Hats, dresses, hoodies, anything of the sort. It was an easy and believable lie.

Alya seemed to buy it, as she seemed to ease her narrowed eyes and relaxed a bit, standing upright again. The two of them made their way to the classroom, before the bell went off, and they engaged in a conversation. Alya's smile had returned again. "So... How'd it go with Adrien?"

There seemed to be little in this world that pleased Alya as much as embarrassing her friend with questions about her obvious crush. "U-Um, it went well, I guess... We got the work done... We talked... It was - It went good!"

"Details, girl, details!" Urged the amateur reporter, nudging her friend with her elbow. "What did you talk about? Did you stutter? Did you find out anything about him you didn't know?"

Feeling a bit pressured, Marinette laughed a bit, and scratched the back of her head. She told her the first thing that came to her head, "I - He said he'd missed school..."

"Go on."

"That he'd missed Nino... You..." Very quietly, Marinette muttered, "And me." She had really just listed out their friend group, but Adrien had mentioned he'd missed them all individually, instead of grouping them all together. That said something, right?

"He said he _missed you_?" Alya asked for confirmation, surprise and smugness in her voice.

The young blue haired girl nodded quickly.

"Thats so adorable!" Alya smiled at Marinette. "Did you tell him you missed him too?"

"U-Um..." Marinette had told him that at some point, definitely. The two of them had exchanged a warm, comfortable smile together, before continuing with the work. She had to explain all of this to Alya once they took their seats, along with other questions the tanned girl asked, as they waited for class to begin. Whenever she tried to leave out certain bits of information to her story Alya would always pick up on this, and pressure her more to release the information until she got the full story.

The truth of it all was that Marinette couldn't be less focused on what had happened with Adrien. Her mind was still running her kiss with Chat on repeat, over and over again, no matter how hard she tried to push the thought of it away. She actually wanted classes to start, just so she could focus on something else - Anything else.

"Oh, speaking of the love of your life." Alya whispered, elbowing Marinette's arm again. "Here he is."

The blunette was brought from her trance when she heard these words, and lifted her head to check. Sure enough, there he was. Adrien had walked into the classroom, and had immediately been showered with greetings and welcomes from various classmates, and, to Marinette's immense irritation, a hug from Chloe, which annoyed her far more than normal, for some reason. He handled all of them with grace and elegance, being polite to everyone, and managing to separate himself from Chloe rapidly, much to Marinette's pleasure.

Adrien made his way to his seat quickly, and received a pat on the back from Nino as his best friend welcomed him back. The two of them engaged in brief conversation while the blond model rummaged around his rucksack, acquiring the work pads he and Marinette had used the previous day to do the homework that had been assigned.

"How were the photo-shoots, dude?" Nino asked Adrien, once he had placed his homework on the table, ready for collection.

"Urgh." Adrien sighed, recalling back to the past week of none-stop fussing, posing, make-up applications, changing outfits, meeting with important people, formal dinners and the likes. "Exhausting." Was his only response. He really didn't even want to think back on how bad it was.

"What did you even do for them?" Alya asked, leaning over from her seat above and behind them.

Listing them off with his fingers as he said them, he recalled, "Casual wear, brand recognition. An add for male deodorant. Swimwear at one point." He sighed. "That one was not fun. It was very, very cold at that point."

Marinette's face went a dark scarlet, so obvious that she had to pretend to get something from her bag while she allowed her face time to calm down.

"Sounds like a tough week." Nino commented, he head in his left hand, leaning on the desk in front of him. Out of all of them, He had the best idea about Adrien's personal life, and had hands on experience when it came to Adrien's father.

"It was. You know what my father's like." Adrien said with a resigned sigh. "Absolute perfection, nothing less. I'm just glad its done."

"Did you get all the work done with Marinette?" Alya asked, and then shooting a glance at Marinette, a smirk stitched to her face.

'Damn it, Alya, not now!' Marinette's thoughts screamed at her best friend. She was still trying to compose herself fromthe image of Adrien... Another blush made its way onto her face. _Great_. This was _just_ what she needed right now.

"Yeah." Adrien replied. "Actually, that reminds me." He unzipped his bag again, and pulled out a few pieces of paper. The same notes Marinette had lent him, now neatly folded into one stack. He turned around and held them out for Marinette. "Thanks for lending me these. I've got them written down now. They were a huge help."

Still flustered, the blunette girl hesitated, blinking a few times before her brain caught up, and took hold of the notes. "I-It's no problem at all!" She replied a bit louder than need be, but she didn't particularly mind.

* * *

The day really did seem to drag out for Marinette. Each lesson, she tried her best to focus on what was being taught. Chemistry, Maths and English, she had tried so hard to listen and to note down the information that was being taught to her, but she just couldn't. She'd write a note or a few down, and then she'd wind up staring into space, thinking back to last night. To the mugger.

 _Back to Chat Noir._

No matter what she tried, her trail of thought always seemed to make its way back to that kiss. She couldn't understand, why was she so fixated on that kiss? It wasn't the first kiss she had shared with him, so why was this one a big deal? That same question repeated itself, again and again and again. She couldn't think of anything else, and it was driving her crazy.

What had struck out for Marinette was a concerning desire she felt she had developed.

She wanted to kiss Chat Noir _again_.

She had absolutely no idea what was compelling her to this. But when the thought made its way into her head, nothing short of a drill was going to help her get rid of it. Her face burned up at the thought of it, and she remembered the warmth and gentleness that Chat exhibited.

And yet, simultaneously, there was Adrien. Right there, right in front of her. He seemed to turn around to glance at her every so often, which never stopped to make her heart stop for a second while she just pretended that nothing was wrong. She was about as see-through as a window, because Adrien kept looking at her, with what she thought was a concerned look in his green eyes. Her heart raced at the thought of him being concerned for her. She was an emotional wreck right now, unsure of what she was feeling for Chat Noir, and the feelings she knew she felt for Adrien Agreste, right in front of her.

Combined that with her own exhaustion and lack of sleep, Marinette felt the entire day crawl past her.

And her mind remained focused on that kiss for every minute of it.

When the end of the day came, Mairnette could not have been more grateful for the passage of time. She needed to get away from this place, from people. She needed to collect her thoughts and gain control of her emotions, or this whole endeavor was going to be the end of her.

She had barely gotten any notes down thanks to her hyperactive mind, rerunning the kiss with Chat in her mind, over and over again. Her heart rate refused to calm itself when she thought about it, and it was messing with her head so badly. She wished she could just erase it from her memory. That would solve so many problems.

"Hey, Marinette."

The blunette girl almost jumped straight through the roof when she heard Adrien's voice saying her name. He reflexes kicking in, she turned rapidly to face the boy she had been crushing on. She must have looked surprised, because he took a step back, and out his hands in the air in mock surrender.

"Sorry! Didn't mean to scare you." Adrien said, trying to avoid upsetting her further.

Marinette quickly straightened herself out and awkwardly tried to reply to Adrien. "Oh! U-Um! S-Sorry. I, ummm, didn't sleep well last night..." She wasn't even lying.

"I saw." Adrien said, punching in his locker number. "You looked like you were about to pass out before the day was done." Opening his locker, he stored away several books, before shutting the door, locking it, and facing Marinette again. "You feeling okay?"

"I-I'm fine. Just tired." Marinette was surprised that she was stringing together a coherent set of sentences around Adrien, while she had struggled with doing that for the majority of the year. She went to exit the building, and was joined by Adrien, whom walked beside her.

"I heard about your run in with a mugger." He said unexpectedly.

Marinette froze for a second. "H-How did you hear about that?"

"People." Was all Adrien said in response, before he redirected his attention to the blunette. "You sure you aren't shaken up from that? That would probably throw anyone off their best."

"It... I suppose. It has been on my mind a little..." It was a convenient white-lie, so she went with it. She hated having to lie to Adrien Agreste, the person she was in love with, but really, what choice did she have? She couldn't exactly tell him she had kissed a superhero, and now had no idea what her emotions even were, could she?

"Well, you've got my number, right?" Adrien asked, to which Marinette nodded. "If you need to talk to someone, just let me know. I'll be here if you need it."

 _Handsome, smart, kind, and caring._

"Thank you..." She said, looking downwards, and burying her chin into her neck, hiding her light blush. It meant a lot coming from Adrien. It meant so much to hear those words from him.

The two of them approached the exit to the school, to be greeted by a rainstorm. The weather in Paris had been changeable, prone to sudden and rapid changes, unpredictably and frequently, recently. The pavements and roads were a darker shade of grey than normal, damp from the water falling from the sky, and the light grey clouds above the two Parisians blocked out a lot of the light, making it rather dark.

It reminded Marinette of the first time she and Adrien spoke, and wound up on friendly terms, after the chewing gum incident. It was almost an exact replica of that scene, only the clouds in the sky were a lighter shade of grey. The two of them were hiding underneath an over-arch, where the rain would not hit them as often, the occasional droplet managing to find its way to them, like a heat seeking projectile.

They stood there in a comfortable silence, watching and listening as the rain fell. The sound of rain always helped Marinette relax. She thought she might open her window when she got home, and allow herself to doze off into a short nap. Maybe she'd feel better after some sleep.

From around a corner, a black limousine parked itself in front of the school, awaiting a passenger. It was Adrien's lift home. Marinette recognized the registration number. Just another one of the little facts she knew about Adrien's life.

"Do you want a ride?" Adrien offered, tilting his head towards Marinette. "Your place is on the way back."

Marinette blushed, but shook her head. "N-No thanks... I want to walk home. I need some... Time to think." She reached into her bag, and searched around in it, looking for her umbrella. She pulled it out, and then realized to herself that it was the same one that Adrien had given to her, so long ago. It felt like a month or so ago, looking back.

"Okay, I understand." Adrien said with a warm, understanding voice. He then noticed the umbrella that she was holding, and a kind, nostalgic smile attached itself to his face. "You kept it."

Needing a few seconds to register Adrien's meaning, she gripped hold of the umbrella. "U-um... Yeah... I've um, been using it ever since... Did you... Want it back?"

Adrien shook his head. "Not really. I'm just glad you're still using it is all. I'm glad that you get more use out of it than I did." It was in that moment he remembered something important. Something that he'd been meaning to give to her before they parted ways. "Oh, I just remembered!" He reached into his bag, and pulled out some sheets of paper that he had been writing on in class. They had scribbles, and very neat penmanship on the paper, all joined up and neatly typo-graphed. His notes. "Here."

"What - What are these for?"

"You didn't get a lot of notes down, did you?" Adrien asked. "You were a wreck today. I know I wouldn't have gotten anything done if I was in that bad a state. So... I thought, you could use my notes if you wanted."

"But... What about you?"

"My tutors taught me all of that stuff before I even went to this school. It was basically just reviewing everything I knew already today. I wouldn't have made notes at all... But I saw you were struggling, so I..." He trailed off, leaving it obvious what he was getting at.

Marinette was speechless. She felt so touched by his kindness. _'He's been taking all these notes throughout the day... Just for me?'_

If it was possible to fall in love with someone for a second time while still being in love with them from the first fall, Marinette just experienced it. She just stared at him for a while, her mouth ajar in surprise and gratitude. Her heart rate increased, but this time, it didn't pain her. If was like a fluffy feeling, spreading throughout her entire body. She'd felt this a few times before. Once with Adrien, the first time she fell for him, and the second one when she kissed Chat Noir. Adrien had stolen her heart twice, without even trying to.

"Um, I mean, you don't have to use them if you don't want to..." Adrien said, a bit unsure of what to do in this situation, with her just staring at him like this, making him lightly warm in the face. He was worried for a second he had offended her in some way, and slowly started to pull the notes back towards him.

He was stopped by Marinette's hands reaching and grabbing the notes in a quick sweeping motion, stopping him from retracting them altogether. "S-Sorry... I was just... Surprised... That was really... Really thoughtful and sweet..." She blushed again. "Thank you..."

Her hands felt warm, along with the rest of her. But upon closer inspection, she realized why her hands were warm.

They had grabbed hold of Adrien's hands when she reached for the stack of paper he had been handing her.

They both locked eyes for a moment, and Marinette went a dark red color once again. She would have pulled her hands away that very second, had Adrien not still been holding the papers. Rather than awkwardly retracting his own palms, the Parisian looked at Marinette's face, and, with a light blush of his own, smiled, warmly, deeply, not breaking eye contact with her. He didn't pull away at all. His calm attitude could only help Marinette keep calm too. His smile was enough to make the blunette girl melt into him, both figuratively and literally. He was so warm, almost like an oven. The gaze his relaxed, beautiful green eyes gave made her feel like they were connected as they searched deep within the others eyes, like they were seeing one another for the very first time. It felt like they were barley even inches away from one another right now.

Interrupting their wonderful moment, a loud car honk shot throughout the air, snapping both of them from the trance that they had both found themselves in. Adrien, seeming reluctant to do so, removed his hands, leaving Marinette with nothing but the papers, and a small sense of his warmth from where he had held onto the stack of pages just a few seconds ago.

"I've gotta go." He said, looking at his limousine. Pulling out an umbrella of his own, he made his way out into the rain, shielding himself from the droplets pf water as they came down, making his way out into the cold to reach his ride to his empty mansion he called home.

Marinette looked at the pages that she was holding. They were Adrien's notes, made especially for her. He had made these notes for no other reason other than to share them with her. It made her feel so special, so significant, so...

It was something deep inside Marinette that made her do what she did next. Summoning all the courage that she had, she spoke loudly and crisply.

"A... Adrien!"

Turning on his heel to face Marinette, he was greeted by the biggest hug of his entire life. Marinette's head resting on his right shoulder, and her arms reaching around his body, underneath his arms, and tightly wrapping around him, bringing her closer to him than she had ever been in her entire life. The notes were still in her hand, and she was immensely careful not to drop them or get them soaked with rain water. She didn't stop there, however, and she moved her own body until they were both pressed against one another. She buried her head into his shoulder. "Thank you."

The Parisian model was stunned for a few seconds, but he wasn't as shy as Marinette. He adjusted his umbrella to that it shielded both of them from the rain, and used his other arm to place his hand softly on the back of her shoulder, and returned the hug, albeit in half, due to holding the umbrella that was protecting them from the elements. He smiled as he returned the hug. "For what?"

"For... Looking out for me today."

"I didn't do anything."

"I saw you..." Marinette told him, feeling like she might be pressing her luck, but she was too in love right now to think straight. "You kept glancing at me... Making sure I was okay... And then you wrote these notes... That what you were doing, right?..."

Silence fell for a few seconds, before Adrien chuckled. "Well, you helped me." He told her, referring to the previous night that they had done homework. "I wanted to return the favor, that was all."

"I didn't expect a favor in return..."

"I know."

The two of them stayed like this for a few seconds before breaking apart, and smiling at one another. As Adrien turned to get into the limousine, Marinette put up her own umbrella, dark black colored, like the night, and watched her crush be driven away, all while he waved from behind the window.

She waved back politely as he was whisked away by the motorized vehicle, until he was no longer in sight. She stared at the road he had gone down for a few seconds, before she remembered she was still holding a stack of papers in her hand. She looked at them, noticing a few droplets of water had made their way to the surface of the thin material, but it was hardly significant. She smiled at the words on the page, all written for the benefit of the young fashion designer. She held them against her chest, like she was hugging the paper. She didn't stop holding them like this until she got home.

* * *

"Knock knock."

Followed by a short series of actual knocks, Marinette found a certain cat individual on her window still, looking in through the windows. Chat Noir was there, holding on to something from the outside of the building, sheltering himself somewhat from the rain while he requested the blunettes attention.

Marinette was tempted to ignore him completely. She still was embarrassed by what had happened the previous night. She wanted to forget it. Pretend it never happened. And Chat Noir was a part of it, so she wanted to pretend that he hadn't been a part of it either.

But she couldn't do that.

Number one reason being, that she was Ladybug. Chat Noir was her partner, and despite what she had done, she cared about him and his safety an immense amount. He was her close friend, her most trusted friend, and her partner in protecting Paris. Probably the only other person in the entire world who understood the struggle of being a regular citizen of Paris, and a superhero, dedicated to defending their town, could be. She couldn't just ignore him.

Reason number two, was that really, she had only herself to blame for what had happened the previous night. She seriously doubted Chat would have kissed her had the girl not kissed him first. Chat was focused on earning the affections of Ladybug... And was earning them, even if he didn't realize it.

Once she reminded herself of these facts, she got up and opened the windows for the black-cat hero to climb in through. He was surprisingly dry, given he had been outside in the rain, and had presumably had to run to get here, but when he got into Marinette's room, there didn't seem to be too much water on him, although, he brought a scent in with him. There was a pleasant petrichor like aroma coming from him, and it only made Marinette more aware of his presence.

Once he had leaped into the room, he face Marinette, and bowed dramatically. "Princess."

"What do you want, Chat?" The blunette girl asked, curious, but sounding more angry than curious, which hadn't been her intention.

 _"Me-ouch_." Chat said with a smirk. "You aren't happy to see me?"

 _'I don't know what to feel about you, Chat!'_ Marinette's mind screamed to say. Chat being here again was messing with her emotions once more. She had only just managed to calm herself down, and now, here was the cat again, throwing a spanner into the works. Instead, she made herself remain silent.

"I just wanted to check on you." Chat admitted, a tender look in his eyes. He had been worried about her, Marinette could tell from his eyes. She had gotten good at reading the expressions from the cats face. "You kind of... Lost it a little after last night. I wanted to see if you were doing okay."

"I-I'm... Fine." Marinette lied. It was a very poor lie, she knew.

"No you're not." Chat said immediately.

The fashion designer sighed. She knew she wasn't.

"I actually wanted to ask..." Chat said, standing closer to Marinette. "Why did you kiss me last night?"

"I've been trying to figure that out all day." Admitted the high school student, her body's temperature rising slowly. Being near Chat again, his scent enhanced, and her now uncomfortably aware of how warm he could be, how gentle he could be, and knowing how she felt after kissing him, Marinette was trying hard not to fall apart right here and now. "I don't know. I-I'd spent all day with the guy I liked, and then you saved me from that mugger, and then we fell... I don't know where in all of that I decided I wanted to... Do that with you."

She couldn't help but notice that the feline hero's black ears atop his head seemed to twitch when she mention she was with a guy she liked. After a few seconds of silence, came, "Ladybug doesn't know." Chat told her. She already knew that, so she could confirm he wasn't lying. "I kept my promise, Princess. It's just between us."

"Thank you, Chat."

Marinette couldn't think straight right now. After her interactions with Adrien today, she was certain, beyond any doubt, that she truly loved him. There really was absolutely no doubt about that. But as she stood there, she realized she felt the same feelings towards Chat Noir. The same feelings, the same nervous disposition, the same butterflies in her stomach... The only reason she didn't call it love was because she was hesitant to... And that wasn't really fair to Chat.

She had thought to herself before, maybe, if Adrien wasn't in the equation, maybe she would have given Chat a chance. Yet now she found herself in this situation, and Adrien was still a part of the equation. She wondered... Maybe...

"...Hey Chat?"

"Hrrm? Yeah, Mari?" The hero asked, applying what she noticed was apparently his new nickname for her. The blunette realised that Chat wasn't flirting, or being as dramatic around her than he normally did. Perhaps it was out of respect that she might be feeling awkward around him. It was cute, to say the least, to see him quite clearly struggle to have a regular conversation without his flirting or jokes to aid him in moving the conversation along

"Did you... Enjoy that kiss?..." She nervously asked. She wanted to know if she was the only one to enjoy it or not.

"Yep." His answer was swift, and almost immediate, not even a hint of mockery or irony in his voice. "I did. A lot. To be honest, that's actually part of why I came to see you." He admitted, walking closer to her. He cupped her cheek with his hand, and looked her in the eyes. She didn't resist. "I want to kiss you again."

It would be a lie to say she didn't want to kiss Chat again too. She felt the same longing for him that she had before, the same one that had made her kiss him in the first place. It burned even more this time. While it still felt like a betrayal of Adrien, she only felt like avoiding Chat would hurt her in the long run. She was Ladybug. Feeling like this around Chat could only lead to serious problems when they needed them the least. God forbid Chat got hurt during a fight because of her own hesitation to be anywhere near him.

Maybe if they kissed again, it would help relax Marinette. Put her mind to rest. Get it out of her system. That's what she hoped, anyway.

Marinette nodded quickly at the cat-superhero with a blush on her face. A sign that it was okay to. "Me too..."

With that, Chat wrapped his arm around Marinette's waist, and puller her closer towards him. He was still warm like he was last night, if not a bit warmer. He was gentle again, but slightly less so, holding her and pulling her enough to move her, whereas he hadn't needed to do that the previous night.

Marinette on the other hand, rested both her hands on the black-cat-themed hero's chest. She felt his heat transfer directly into her body. Once again, her blood felt like it was on fire, and they hadn't even kissed yet.

Once their lips did meet, she felt the longing that she had been kindling all this time disappear. Her heart rate felt sped up as she relaxed herself into the kiss, and as Chat Noir held her closer to him. Their first kiss, the previous night, had felt like an explosion of emotions, all detonating at various times, and Marinette had been totally at their mercy, this time, however, she had a better control of her emotion, suppressing an urge to scream or push back Chat.

Their lips parted, briefly, before rejoining again. Marinette could tell that Chat was enjoying herself, and she also was but it felt wrong, almost.

She was being drawn to both Chat and Adrien equally again, and it was tearing her up inside. She couldn't comprehend how this was happening, but thoughts of the handsome blond model seemed to slip into the background as she and Chat kissed again. Who was Chat? She had never thought, or even particularly wanted to know, until the moment their lips had been pressed together. She understood now, why Chat had wanted to know Ladybug's identity.

Chat moved his other hand to Marinette's other cheek, and kissed her again, adding a passion that he hadn't had before, leaving the surprised teenager breathless.

Was she a bad person for feeling like this, for doing this, when she still loved Adrien? Was it wrong for her to like this? She didn't know, but she just couldn't hate it. She had tried to convince herself she had, but she couldn't. She had been waiting for this for an entire day now. She had practically craved it.

 _Beep beep beep_

Chat's miraculous. How long had they spent doing this? It must have been a while if he was about to transform back. She noticed how reluctant to go he also looked, as he had gritted his teeth as he had been forced to let go of the girl he had held for, apparently, quite a while.

Marinette on the other hand, needed to catch her breath. She had practically been kissing him without oxygen, but it had been worth it. By God, it had been worth it. She felt calmer. More relaxed. Like she wasn't craving him anymore. She still wanted more, but it no longer felt like she was going insane because of it. She knew she wouldn't be like this for too long, but she could enjoy the peace of mind while it lasted. "C-Chat..."

"I gotta go." He said, reluctantly, leaping onto the window ledge to leap out of the building, and to find a safe place to re-transform back to his civilian self.

"Chat... I - I don't know what I'm feeling anymore..." Marinette said, before the boy she had just kissed up a cyclone with disappeared into the streets. "I-I don't regret that kiss... Or what we just did now... But..."

"But?..." Chat was calm, soothing. He encouraged her to talk, without outright demanding it.

"I-I feel like I'm being totally torn in two here. Th-There's you... And what we've done... A-And then there's Adrien..." As she said his name, his face appeared in her mind. "I... I can't think straight... Y-You like Ladybug too, right? But you keep coming here... So... Whats... Whats happening to me?"

 _Beep beep beep beep_.

Chat only had a couple of minutes to try and reassure the girl whom was trying to pour her heart out to him. But the honest truth was, he felt the exact same way. Plagg had sort of been right in a way. And he wasn't even sure of his own emotions. Due to his upbringing, he simply had better control over them. He'd had to.

But he grinned at the mention of Adrien.

"Honestly, I couldn't tell you." Chat said with a smile. "If you like Adrien, why not tell him? I don't think he'd turn you down." _'Actually, I know for a fact he wouldn't turn you down.'_

"Because... I... I feel the same around him like I do around you."

 _'Yet you're able to have a coherent conversation with Chat Noir.'_ Chat thought to himself with an amused smile. "Princess, if I'm causing you trouble, just say the word, and I won't come back."

"N-No!" Marinette said, a bit too loudly. "I-I don't want that... I... I don't know what I want..."

"I didn't until you kissed me." Chat said with a smile." Beep beep beep beep. Chat could swear Plagg was speeding up the cool down timer to get him away from this situation faster. "Damn it."

"Chat..." Marinette knew she was pushing her luck, but she had to ask." Do you think... Adrien would hate me if he knew what we..." He voice trailed off, like she was ashamed.

"Definitely not." Came Chat's reply. "I've... Met him a few times. He isn't like that. I promise you, Princess."

"...Would... You hate me if I -"

"There is no way I could ever, _ever_ hate you in my entire life, Princess." Chat said with a warm smile. Beep beep beep beep beep. "I have to go now." He smiled at her once again before he used his staff to propel himself into the air, doing a front flip as he did so, ever the show off.

He felt the same way she did. Torn between two people he loved. But the two he loved, Ladybug and Marinette, were the same person. One in the same.

Marinette couldn't be so lucky.

* * *

 **I know I seem to be dodging the entire point of Adriens identity in this story, but I assure you, we're getting there. One or two more chapters, and we'll be there. I've got a lot planned for it, don't worry ^_^ I'm trying to make this story as well written and as coherent as I can. I don't want to rush this piece.**

 **First things first - Do you like the new story Icon?**

 **I'm pretty amazed that this story seems to be doing so well. It's one I'm enjoying writing immensely, and with a lot of free time, it's helped me get the break from Love, Loss and Loyalty I seriously needed. I assure you guys who like that story though, It will come back, I promise, if only to satisfy my OCD.**

 **I've been keeping myself immensely busy over the past couple of weeks, seeing as I finished my first year of college, and I've been setting myself small goals to achieve over the break, such as reaching 500 subscribers on YouTube, gaining 50 followers on Wattpad, and above all, improving my writing and drawing skills for when I return, and, I don't like to brag, but I feel like i'm achieving the first one of those options pretty well.**

 **Also, I've noticed there are some people who seem to look to me for advice... You can talk to me, guys, whenever you need to. I'm totally available, I'll read your stuff if you want me to, and if I like it, I'll definitely tell you how I think it can be improved. There's always a lot of good work on Fanfiction. net and Wattpad, and I love seeing the ideas people get. I get more ideas to adapt and work with, and I'm more than happy to return the favor by giving you what little advice I can. I only say this because some people on Wattpad and a few from Ff. net have been tryiong to get in contact with me, so if you want to talk to me, I'm pretty much always free to.**

 **At any rate guys, I'm gonna go for a mile or two run, then come back, and get the next chapter started. The story shall start picking up from this point onwards guys, SO I hope you enjoyed it, and I will see you, in whatever it is, that I do indeed, decide, to make next. See ya!**


	5. Change to Come

Ryuu Gibererin watched as his home, his business, the same home he had lived in for the past ten years of his life after coming to Paris, burn to the ground. The sight hurt and terrified him.

Choosing the leave Japan to come to Europe had been a dream of his since he had been a child, longing to experience another culture outside of his island nation. He had found a passion for botany and gardening when he arrived in the European city, and after a few years of hard labor, had opened his own flower shop. He had several employees whom he got along with exceptionally well with, and they spent many hours of the day together.

Thankfully, they had not been in the building when the fire had started to spread.

The cause of the fire was still unknown, but the police claimed it was something to do with a broken gas line that had caught a spark from a group of delinquents whom had lit themselves some cigarettes, and had run off when the fire had sparked. This was due to several eye witness accounts. Ryuu knew the ones they referred to well. They used the front of his store to linger and loiter around, but they never seemed to be a bad sort, so he never particularly minded. He had even exchanged pleasantries with them. He was on first name terms with them, as he had spoken with them, making sure that as long as they behaved, there would be no issue with them staying around his store.

He knew the only one whom smoked was a rather brutish looking boy named Twist. Or at least, that's what he called himself. It didn't take much to figure out that he was the reason his store had caught fire.

But that wasn't the only reason.

Ryuu knew, deep down, it had been a mistake from Twist. He panicked, like any normal child would do in this situation, and ran. But it was Ryuu's own crippling fear that stopped him from smothering the flame. He just ran out of the store in his own panic.

Around him, people tried to reassure him. The police offered to find the group of youngsters for him, and he was given many words of compassion and sympathy from the people he knew well. He thanked them, sincerely, but asked to be left alone. The firefighters took to their work, and combated the fire, but Ryuu couldn't watch it happen. He just wanted to be alone, and peeled off, away from the scene, to find a quiet place to be alone with his grief.

He couldn't stand the sight of fire. He had always been afraid of large fires, even as a child. He had intense pyrophobia, and insisted others keep open flames away from him.

And it was burning his home down. He couldn't watch it anymore. Even if the fire brigade were here now. The image had been burned into his eyes.

He had lived there for ten years. Now where would he sleep? He had run that business for ten years, trying to be as friendly and as social with his workers and his customers as possible. He had done everything in his power to make as many people around him as happy as he could. It was what he loved to do.

And now all he had left of that life he had built for himself, was just a red rose.

* * *

It had been some time for Hawkmoth to open the sliding roof from his lair to observe the city of Paris for weakened individuals, whom he could manipulate. He had been biding his time, planning his next move against the detestable Ladybug and Chat Noir. The power he yearned for, the miraculous of both the cat and the bug, would amplify his own powers tenfold each. He already knew what he wanted to use them for.

But he still required them to be in his possession.

The power he had saved, building up over the past few days, would allow him to create an immensely powerful Akuma, whom would be gifted strength and powers to an abnormal level. They would be stronger than Ladybug and Chat Noir, there was no question about that.

His Empathetic powers flowed over the masked man as he sensed the aura of many civilians in the city of Paris. Thousands upon thousands of individuals, passing by each day, all tackling various challenges, commitments and problems in their day to day lives. Plenty of opportunities for sadness, anger, hatred of frustration to form. From the irritated to the angry, there was always someone that could be Akumatized. He sensed throughout the city, looking for the one individual whose pain stood out from everyone else, whose pain toppled all others of the city, whose very soul screamed out, in anger, in pain, in sadness, or anything negative. His Akuma could merge and manipulate these individuals, and create super villains that could terrorize the entire city in a great many, many ways.

And the masked villain believed he found his victim of the day.

He felt the emotions of fear and anger, all stemming from a person who had been wronged, paralyzed by his own fears to save what little he had in a land in which he was a foreigner to. Unsure of the customs, he had tried to appease everyone had met, and now, his decade long endeavor of work and service had ended unfairly.

"A man wronged, grieving over the loss of his home and livelihood, all due to his own fears..." The perfect combination of a grieving soul. Easy pickings. Hawkmoth held his left hand open, allowing one of the moths to flutter into his hands. As it landed, a grin appeared on the villains face. "What an easy target for my Akuma."

His right hand glowed with a dark, evil force, as he clasped it over the moth, forcing the powers into the dark-dwelling creature, mutating it into one of his evil Akuma. These tiny creatures carried the powers that Hawkmoth bestowed onto them, until they found their way to their next target, whomever Hawkmoth desired it to be. "You, my friend, shall receive a dose of power like no other..." He said to himself, freeing the Akuma, and sending it into the great Parisian sky, where it would navigate its way to the poor soul Hawkmoth decided would suffer in his name.

The time was right. He could manipulate this man, and plot on their next move carefully.

This time, he would spend however much time it took. He would prepare. He would plan. He would strategise. The powers he was sending were by far the strongest he had ever bestowed upon one individual. Perhaps, they were even stronger than the villains himself.

There would be no mistakes. Not this time.

* * *

Ryuu's eyes stung with tears. It just felt so unfair. He kept thinking that maybe this was some sort of practical joke, that if he went back, there would be his shop, with his employees wondering what had made him leave so suddenly. He prayed that to be the case. But he knew that it would never happen.

He felt sick to his stomach. He could have avoided this himself. He knew that deep down, but he couldn't accept it. It was too difficult to accept that this was because of his own failures. That his own fear had cost him his home. That Twist had done this to him.

Twist...

His sadness became anger all too quickly.

He had had to fight to get to this country. He had fought hard to scrape together a living to come to this country. He had worked until he hands bled from cuts to afford to buy a home. He had sat through paperwork after meeting after discussion and debate to get the permit he needed to sell him flowers. He had worked hard serving everyone whom came to his shop. He served them with a smile.

And all it took was one stupid teenager to destroy the past ten years of his life.

Where was the justice in that?

His hand gripped tighter around the one rose he had left of his previously proud shop. A Rosa Rugosa, a beautiful rose that was white towards the bulb of the plant, slowly becoming more and more pink as it reached out the the petals. It truly was a beautiful rose, unique in the world of botany for its beauty. They were common in his homeland. A sign of home. He had brought over many seeds to sell to the fine people of Paris, to being a bit of Japan to the European city. All burning up right now. All destroyed.

In that moment, the dark moth, the Akuma, merged with the flower, and in that instant, the connection was made.

For a second, Ryuu didn't know what was happening around him. His feelings of rage, despair and anger suddenly multiplied, until they were all that remained of the normally kind man. He felt the need for revenge, destruction. Someone had wronged him. and they had to pay.

He heard a voice, a voice so smooth, so welcoming, he couldn't ignore it if he tried to.

"Overgrow," Hawkmoth started, granting his name to the now Akumatized person. The commotion had been made. They were merely now putty in his hands, able to be sculpted into whatever shape he desired. "I am Hawkmoth. I'm gifting you the power to regrow your home, your beloved plants, your very livelihood... And the powers to attain revenge on those whom wronged you. You have been given one of the strongest powers I have ever bestowed upon an individual... And all I ask in return, is a simple favor."

He chose his words carefully. He knew exactly how to play a person like a fiddle. He knew how to manipulate someone to do his bidding. He had done it countless times before. All it required was the right words. "In exchange for these powers, you will bring me the miraculous' of Ladybug and Chat Noir!" Extending a friendly persona, Hawkmoth popped the question. "What do you say?"

Corrupted by the power he felt flowing throughout his body, Ryuu, now Overgrow, smirked. He could feel the pure power running through his veins. The strength to reclaim what was his. The strength to get revenge.

Overgrow liked that.

"Just tell me what to do, Hawkmoth."

"Excellent." Another successful minion made. Appealing to a simple desire for retribution and revenge was a sure fire way to getting what the villain wanted. "You have the powers that will bring Paris to it's knees if that is what you wish. However, this must be planned carefully. Too many times have Ladybug and Chat Noir countered your predecessors. For now, you will find a spot to hide. And we shall converse upon the plan once you are at no risk of detection. You shall have your revenge soon enough."

"Yes, Hawkmoth." Overgrow agreed, making his way to the dark districts of Paris.

Soon, Twist would learn the true meaning of the saying _'Every rose has its thorns._ '

* * *

"Tikki?... I think I'm in love with Chat Noir."

This had never been what Marinette had expected to come out of her life. Falling in love with Chat Noir. Her partner. The first boy she kissed, for reasons still beyond her reasoning. It had all come out of nowhere. No way to counter it, no way to know why it had happened. All she knew was that it had happened. It had been a few days since her second set of kisses with Chat Noir, and each day since, he had come back, to check that she was doing alright. He never initiated anything, trying to respect her confused feelings.

She was _always_ the one to kiss him.

After school, this was the only chance she had been given with her Kwami to talk about her feelings. She couldn't really go to anyone else to discuss how she felt. If she spoke to anyone else, they'd dismiss her as a fangirl. How many people would say they were in love with Chat Noir in Paris? Marinette knew it was probably in the thousands.

"But what about Adrien?" Tikki asked her human friend softly, understanding it was a sensitive subject for her right now. Many Ladybug's had been present throughout history, and Tikki had seen a wide range of characters throughout history. Some she was very fond of. Some she would rather forget. But none as sensitive and soft hearted as Marinette.

"Thats what makes feeling like I do about Chat Noir so wrong..." Mairnette sighed, sinking her head into her knees. "I still love him too. I still want to..." She couldn't finish her thought process... The important thing to understand was she still loved the blond haired Parisian model. "Its just... So confusing..."

The kisses she had shared with Chat Noir had helped her emotions regulate themselves. She understood her feelings towards the kitty-cat more clearly. The confusion that had run throughout her mind the hell of a clutter that had been her heart a few days ago had been the source of her total distress. Now she understood the feelings, knowing what they were, she was able to calm herself appropriately. It was the same thing that she had done with Adrien for the past year.

She had kissed Chat, which still stood out to her. She had known Adrien for arguably longer, knew him better, and they hadn't kissed, mostly due to her nervous disposition around him. They were her first kisses, of course they would stand out to her. They had kissed many times now. And she liked each and every one of them. Without question or hesitation, she liked the kisses that they had exchanged. His warmth, the taste of his lips, how tender he was with her, how gentle he held her... "Is it wrong that I liked the kisses I had with Chat, Tikki?" Marinette asked with a dreamy sigh, remembering the exchange now, but with fondness, rather than disdain.

"I don't think so." Tikki replied, after considering for half a second. "Hey, maybe you would find out who you liked more if you kissed Adrien!"

Marinette thought she was going to choke on her own sharp gasp of air. "T-Tikki, i-it's not that simple! I-If I kissed Adrien, and then didn't talk to him anymore, people would get suspicious... Kissing Chat only works... Because I don't know who he is... If we do go to the same school, then he hides himself well." She had to admit, the idea of Chat being there in her very classroom gave her a rush.

"Oh, Marinette." Tikki sighed. "This really is a mess you're in."

"You're telling me, Tikki." Marinette laughed halfheartedly. She smiled weakly at her ceiling and sighed. She found herself wanting to reveal herself as Ladybug to Chat Noir. To show him what the truth was, that he had fallen for the same girl twice... But she knew she couldn't. Really, that would only make her a hypocrite. She had been the one to insist on keeping their identities secret, while Chat Noir had basically gotten to the point of pleading with her, and she still coldly refused to. And now she wanted to for the sole reason of making her feel better about falling in love with Chat? That wasn't fair, she knew.

But then again, she knew if she were to chose Chat over Adrien, theoretically, that she couldn't stay in a relationship with the alter ego of Chat Noir. She would have to know his identity. And if he revealed his to her, then it was only fair that she revealed hers to him. But the risks were inherently there.

The risk that someone could find out about their identities was a huge risk to both of their safety. An attack in their homes directly could cause serious danger to either of them, or an attack while they were at school could put others around them in danger. There was little doubt that Hawkmoth would use human shields as a means of acquiring their miraculous' if he thought that was what it would take.

And if they lost their miraculous to Hawkmoth, what could they really do to stop him?

Marinette sighed. Why couldn't it just be simple?...

"Maybe I need to go for a walk."

"You're not going to ignore me out here, are you, Princess?"

Marinette straight up yelled in surprise when she saw Chat Noir, once again, handing outside her window. Her reflexes kicked in, and she shot up from her bed in surprise, but her clumsiness kicked in roughly the same time, which made her trip up on her own bed sheets, which tangled around her feet, and fall onto the floor. She saw Chat look away with one eye closed, and a suppressed smirk.

"Marinette! Are you alright?" The blunette heard her father call from the floor just below her.

She came up with a lie, as quickly as possible. "Y-Yeah! I-I just got surprised by a spider, that's all! I've got it now, I'm fine!" She wasn't too bothered by spiders, but one the size of a human hanging from outside her window would be enough to surprise anyone. Although in this analogy, the spider was Chat Noir. He was sneaky like a spider, she would give him that much.

Picking herself up, and untying her feet from her knotted up bed sheets - Honestly, how had she even managed that - And made her way to open her bedroom window, where Chat gave her a huge smirk.

"I know you said you _fell_ for me, but this is getting ridiculous." He joked, with the same smile on his face that anyone would make after knowing they made a cringe-worthy joke.

"Shut up, kitty." Marinette said with a bemused smile. She couldn't help but smirk at that one. "What's the reason for this visit?"

"Same routine. I just wanted to make sure you were alright." Chat Noir told her.

"I'm fine, kitty." Marinette smiled sweetly at the cat themed hero. "If you want to come over, you really should just say so."

"Yeah, I'm sure that won't arouse any suspicion." He said with friendly sarcasm. "A superhero just walks into the bakery, asks the owners if their daughter is there, and excuses himself to go up and see her. Who would dare think that there was some sort of ulterior motive behind that?"

Playfully punching his in the shoulder, she replied, "You know that's not what I mean."

"I'd love to, trust me... But I can't."

Marinette was surprised to say the least. This was the first time that he had shown up and replied he couldn't stay. She had thought she was being rather clear that she was happy he was here. She usually was. "W-why not?"

Chat Noir looked back at Paris. "I don't know, but I feel like something really, really bad is about to happen." He explained to her. "There's been a report about plant-life going out of control at random areas in the city, and then returning completely to normal at random times. There's nothing going on _right now_... But I think that there might be an Akumatized victim out there. As much as I'd _love_ to get close with you again, I gotta make sure that Paris is safe."

This was the first Marinette had heard of this occurrence and suddenly, spending time kissing Chat seemed unimportant, however unpleasant to think about. She knew he was doing the right thing, the professional thing to do in this situation. Part of her was proud of him, like the wife of a solider. The other half was worried about him, again, like the wife of a solider. "Oh... Yeah... That does seem more important... I - I understand. That's more urgent than me, I'm not going anywhere." She truly did understand. And she wasn't going to be here in the next five minutes either. If anyone thought she was going to let Chat Noir fight this crime alone, they were dead wrong.

Chat sighed in relief. "Thanks for understanding, Mari."

Just because she couldn't spend a long time with him as Marinette, didn't mean that she was going to let him leave without a kiss from her. She quickly pressed her lips against the cat-themed superhero, and hugged him tightly. "Be safe."

"Anything you ask, Princess."

They separated from their embrace, and Chat turned to leap out of the window to combat whatever evil was lurking around the streets of Paris. Marinette felt he was right. She couldn't shake the feeling something horrible, something that was going to change their lives, was about to happen. To be honest, it scared her.

"Hey, Chat?"

chat turned his head to face the blunette girl, whom was looking at him, her hands clasped above her chest. She looked nervous. Scared. "Yeah, Princess?"

"...I love you."

Chat's heart felt like his heart was exploding into warmth. It had been felt, but unspoken between the two. She always said she felt the exact same about Chat and Adrien Agreste. While he had figured that much out... Hearing it... Just made him feel so, so much better.

"I love you too, Mari."

"B-But what about Ladybug?"

"I said, I love _you_ , Marinette." Chat repeated, smiling at the nervous girl behind him. "No one else." He then leaped into the Parisian city, searching for the possible Akuma.

Marinette's heart would have exploded if she didn't need to be somewhere important - Chat's side, helping him, defending him, working with him as a teammate once again. but she took a few moments to process what had been said to her.

Chat Noir said he loved her. _Her_. Not Ladybug.

He had loved Ladybug since the moment they had met one another. Constant flirting, always making jokes and taking every opportunity he had to get closer to her. someone who was calm, confident, dependable, and strong.

And he had chosen Marinette.

"Did you mean that?" Tikki asked, hovering next to her head, coming out from her hiding place.

The young superhero nodded confidently. "I meant every word, Tikki. I'm scared that something is going to happen today. Something that's going to really shake up our lives."

"So, you wanted to tell him before it was too late to?"

"Sort of." Marinette said with a smile. "I wanted to give him one more reason to not get himself killed out there."

"I take it we're not staying here while he goes and fights the bad guys alone, are we?"

"Absolutely not." It had been some time since she had become Ladybug. Just under a week, she thought. Everything had certainly changed in such a short time frame, there was no question about that. But the one thing that hadn't changed, was that she, Ladybug, was still responsible for defending Paris. If Hawkmoth was making a move again, then she had to be on the front lines with Chat Noir. For the first time in a while, her earrings sparkled. "Tikki, spots on!"

Overgrow smiled to himself. The changes to his appearance had been subtle at first, but now, he looked like a plant based demon. Across his face, stopping just as they reached his now dark green eyes, were large, clearly recently grown roots, covering parts of his face, all shooting off in different directions on the right side of his face. Roots were all over his arms also, growing upon him as if he were soil. They gave the image like the right side of his face was in pieces, like the roots were holding him together like he was a jigsaw. In reality, he never felt more powerful.

The powers he had gained from Hawkmoth were extraordinarily strong. He had been gifted the powers of Agrokinesis. He could control any and all plant life, regardless of what it was, by releasing a pheromone that aided plant growth, thus controlling it to his whims. He could make a rose seed bloom in approximately three seconds, and could create a thorny vine just by thinking about it.

However, his powers had one key limitation. He required plant life to be around him, and he could not grow plants from his body. Instead, he needed access to already grown plants. And there had been little better place to start than a park in the center of Paris.

From there, it had been a simple matter to find another flower shop, and steal all of the seeds that they had. He now had several pouches filled to the brim with various kinds of seeds, all now as valuable as bullets were to a hunter. With them, he was unstoppable.

Around him, blades of grass grew to the sizes of buildings, and turned razor sharp, and strong enough to pick up various cars, which he threw at incoming police officers, whom had to run for their lives in order to avoid being crushed by a Renault Clio V and a Ford Fiesta.

Destroying Paris... It felt good. Immensely good. He was all powerful. He could be the stronger person in the entire world right now. Nothing could stop him. All his life, he had been struggling to make ends meet. Bowing down, appeasing everyone he had to to get just the smallest scrap just to get through the day. And now, he was the one who was making other bow before him. He was all powerful, almighty. He was Ryuu Gibererin. _Overgrow_.

"Excellent." Overgrow heard Hawkmoth's voice in his head once again. "You have mastered your powers well. Now, its time for you to retreat, before Ladybug and Chat Noir appear. We must keep them guessing, until the time is right."

"As you command, Hawkmoth." Overgrow complied. His body slowly turned into a brown, mulch-like substance, which disintegrated him at the atomic level, and slid down into a drainage sewer, where he would reform into his human body, leaving him with the powers to jump up and strike Paris wherever he felt like it.

"When do I take the miraculous?" Overgrow questioned Hawkmoth, holding in his hand the Rosa Rugosa that gifted him his powers. As he held it, roots spread further across his face, barely even an inch from his eyes now. The sooner he took the miraculous from Ladybug and Chat Noir, the sooner he could seek his revenge.

"In due time, my friend Overgrow." Hawkmoth said with reassurance. "When you fight them, show them no mercy. They will come to you, tired and already drained. I want you to show no mercy. And remember the strategy."

"Focus only on one. Keep the other at bay."

"Excellent." Without one, the other was useless. Defenseless. An easy target.

"Do you want me to kill them?" Overgrow asked.

 _"Without question._ "

Hawkmoth was not leaving it to chance anymore. The two of them had been a thorn in his side for far, far, _far_ too long. He had attempted to show them _some_ mercy, not wishing to end lives. that would make remaining secret much harder to do. But now he had had enough. A vicious smile appeared on his face, and he laughed to himself.

Tonight - Ladybug or Chat Noir _died_.

* * *

 **Fun fact for you all - Overgrow is actually a re-skin of a main character in my original story, Bloodshot. His code-name comes from his power to control plant-life and nature, and his birth-name, Ryuu Gibererin, translates to "Century plant hormones." Ryu, being a shortened from the Japanese word ryuuzetsuran, meaning "Century Plant", and Gibererin being the Japanese word for a plant hormone.**

 **This chapter came out a lot sooner, and is slightly shorter than other chapters, for the sole reason of, this is way too much fun to write. I'm loving writing this story up so much, it's sort of taken over my life for a short while. I love hearing what you guys have enjoyed in this story, and It's about to pick up. I have big plans for the next few chapters, so we're gonna see, my friends, just how much Adrien's life is about to be shaken, and what he does.**

 **you can find my Wattpad and YouTube accounts in my profile for more from me**

 **And I will see you in the next chapter of whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	6. Those Who Know

"Talk about the grass being greener." Chat Noir muttered to himself as he inspected the most recent sight of the plant attacks. Around the entire area, was upturned tarmac from the roads, plants, twisted and contorted out of control, in ways never seen before in the history of the human race, and several destroyed locations, including bars, shops and homes. Cars and buildings had been crumpled and crunched into the dust in the wake of the violence that had spread this far into the city. There was a large number of policemen and police cars, trying to keep the reporters and the civilians out of the area, until they were certain the danger was over, as well as scanning the scene for evidence.

There were, thankfully, only a few injuries. The most major one involved a police officer breaking his arm after being thrown into a building. The injury wasn't serious, but the officer in question would be given a few weeks off service until his arm healed. There was talk, however, that the lack of injuries wasn't intentional. The officer whom had been injured was insistent on the idea that he was just lucky, that the attacker had had every intention to kill him. Looking around, Chat had to agree. No one who planned on showing mercy would have destroyed, nay, completely obliterated a street like this. The officer was lucky to be alive.

"I don't suppose you saw what this person looked like?" He asked, crouching down by the injured policeman. He was a young recruit, probably one of his first encounters with an Akuma. He looked shaken up quite a bit, as well as in intensive pain. Next to him, was a paramedic, checking his bandages, making adjustments where they were needed.

"No... Argh... His face had these... Roots, I think they were, covering half of his face. He can move plants... Not sure how, but he could... Argh!" He cried out through gritted teeth. "Easy there, doc."

"Sorry." The paramedic said, although he didn't look particularly apologetic. He was probably used to all of these sorts of injuries by now, and he knew that the pain was something the officer was just going to have to force himself through. Chat ignored this.

"Okay, thanks for your help." The cat-themed hero said, standing up. He pulled up both of his fists, and slammed them into one another. "Don't worry, I'll take care of this Akuma myself, easy!"

"No you won't, Chat Noir."

She had been silent upon her arrival at the scene, only now retracting her yo-yo into her palm, catching it with a swipe. Upon her appearance, the civilians behind the police line, and the reporters, started getting louder, calling her name, asking for a statement of some description. She had always been far more popular with the Parisians than Chat Noir had. Seeing the back-cat hero was a sign of something happening. Seeing the red-and-black-polka-dotted hero was a sign of something sinister occurring.

As was his custom, Chat Noir did a grandiose bow. "My lady. So nice of you to _drop_ in, but as you can see, I've had the situation under control."

As Ladybug, Marinette had better control of her emotions. Not by a huge amount, as she could still very easily get nervous and angry. While she might had blushed as Mairnette, as Ladybug, she was calm and collected, but her face went ever so slightly pink, only noticeable to those who paid very close attention.

"I only just heard." Ladybug said, walking over to Chat Noir, and inspecting the damage. It looked like a bomb had gone off with all the damage. Hopefully, her Miraculous Ladybug technique would fix all of the damage. "This has to be the work of an Akuma. No way is this natural."

"I was thinking the same thing." Chat said, agreeing with his partner. He didn't make any particular efforts to flirt with Ladybug anymore. This wasn't something that went unnoticed, as Ladybug noted how serious Chat was actually being, in contrast to his usual self. Underneath her Ladybug mask, Marinette felt immensely happy that Chat truly meant what he had told her. He wasn't flirting with people behind her back, he was being totally honest with her. It made her feel special.

Chat himself knew where his loyalties were.

"Did you find any information out?" She asked, trying to distract herself from her own thought process.

"Apparently whoever did this is isn't messing around." Chat told her, looking at her, and pointing at the destruction. "According to the eyewitnesses, the Akumatized person can control plant life, and make it do... This. Certainly a step up from Bubbler or Mime."

Ladybug couldn't agree more. Whomever did this had absolutely vicious intent. It wasn't like a person who had a specific intention, or someone who targeted one individual, or at least one that could be seen. This was someone who was using their powers freely and without restriction, causing as much damage as they could throughout Paris. Someone acting out in random fits of violence, whom had clear malicious intentions.

That made the situation a lot more tricky to actually deal with. She had heard the reports on her way over, of three other parks having been attacked, and destruction in the streets surrounding them. There seemed to be no real pattern, or not an obvious one at least, to the reason of these attacks. They just seemed to happen out of no where, for no reason whatsoever. The issue that surrounded this particular case was the fact that there was no way to spring a trap around their particular target. They just had to guess where this guy was going to show up before they could retaliate.

This method of Akumatization didn't suit Hawkmoth whatsoever. Hawkmoth always chose targets with very specific goals and aims that he could use to manipulate his victims. From what the polka-dotted crime-fighter could see, there didn't seem to be any reason for this particular person. It was just a completely random act of violence, for the sake of violence.

As she considered all of these facts, she heard the large number of onlookers calling out and shouting for her and Chat Noir. Reporters who wanted an interview, something that they could use to televise to the masses, or civilians, who wanted to know about the dangers, and wanted some reassurances. There was a growing number of them amassing at the police blockade of crime two, cars and officers, all calling for various officials.

"Maybe you should go say something to them, m'lady." Chat suggested with folded arms. His ears atop his head were twitching rapidly in response to all this noise. They were clearly fake ears, but Ladybug often forgot that they did act as functioning ears also. One of the many quirks about Chat's costume.

"I thought you were handling this all by yourself, kitty?" Ladybug asked, with a hint of humor. "I thought you _loved_ the camera."

"Gotta leave _some_ of the spotlight for you, LB." Looking around, Chat saw some of the plants left behind from the attack, still manipulated and mutated. "You go talk to them. I'm gonna have a look at something." Before Ladybug could say anything more, Chat left her alone, to deal with the media while he went to inspect these plants.

Once Chat Noir had arrived at the foot of the fauna, he saw that Ladybug was already talking to the press, handling a large amount of questions, aided by several police officers. He felt somewhat guilty about leaving her to dry like that, but he could swear he had made a discovery regarding the Akumatized victims powers. He looked at the plants carefully, inspecting them closely. They were rather grotesque fauna, bulky in their structure. From where they were in the park, they were just blades of grass, but there was a lot too them. They were far larger for a start, wilting over and arching over. Approximately, they were roughly five meters in height, and at least a centimeter in thickness. The edges were sharp, almost like the blade of a sword. The cat-hero ran his finger down the edge of it. It was sharp, enough to make him lightly start bleeding.

Chat inspected his claws on his fingers, and decided to test how durable this grass was. Taking a step back, to charge up the power and build up the speed, he then struck and stepped forward, like he was throwing a reverse punch, but kept his hands open, allowing his claws to slice though the grass. It tore apart as easily as regular grass, but there was a lot of it, so Chat had to put in lots of effort in the cut the blade in one. It came falling down with a loud thud.

"At least we know that they can be broken." He muttered to himself. He was only able to do that due to the strength and durability of his claws. He had no idea if Ladybug would be able to achieve the same result using her yo-yo.

There was something about this whole situation that really bothered Chat. This person was attacking random places throughout Paris with no relation to one another, other than they were heavily grassy and nature filled areas.

How was that person getting from place to place without being spotted?

"Chat?" He heard Ladybug's voice from behind him. She had broken away from the reporters rather quickly. "Find anything?"

"Lemme _grassk_ you a question, m'lady." Chat said, making a pun, but with a serious voice. If he was giving up flirting with Ladybug, he was damn sure going to fill that gap with a lot of puns. "How do you suppose this guy gets from park to park? You'd think a 'Root man' would stand out in the streets, even if he wasn't trashing the place."

Ladybug secretly smiled at Chat's silly puns, and then answered. "One of the officers mentioned that just before I slipped away. He claims that he saw the Akumatized person turn into this... Almost fertilizer sort of substance, and slide into the sewers."

Upon hearing this information, Chat formulated an idea. He pulled out his baton and hit a few buttons, accessing its secondary function as a layout checker. He found the road he and Ladybug was stood on, and checked the sewer routes. Sure enough, each route ran near a park, or a nature preserve, or a nature significant site. "If that's true then, m'lady..." Chat showed her his batons map. "Then look where the nearest park is."

Leaning in closely to the baton, she read aloud the name. "The Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont!" Ladybug exclaimed. The route from this park was almost a perfect line to the Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont, a very famous set of gardens and parks in Paris. There would be a very large number of people there. A very high chance for casualties.

"Exactly." Chat said, taking back his staff and extending it, holding it behind his neck. "I think he's going to go there to try and draw us in. We need to be there before him."

"You go." Ladybug told him. As much as she hated sending Chat Noir, her partner, and above all, someone she had grown to love, into a dangerous situation alone, she was confident in his abilities. She wouldn't be too far behind him. She could be there in no time. "I'll explain the situation to the officers. They could get the area evacuated before the Akuma arrives!"

Chat Noir agreed with this plan, and nodded at his partner with a smile. "Don't worry about me, LB. I'll have the Akuma tied up before you can even swing on over with that yo-yo."

"Don't be over-confident!" Ladybug snapped, which caught Chat off guard, his grin dropping automatically, and his eyes widening at the sudden strictness Ladybug displayed. One of the few times Marinette's emotions carried through to her Ladybug persona was when dealing with the people she loved. Chat Noir was one of them now. "You have to be careful! This Akuma is strong! I don't want anything happening to you..."

In response, a surprised Chat smiled and said, "Aww, you _do_ care. I guess I must be starting to _grow_ on you." Even now, his puns and jokes were paramount.

 _'You've been growing on me for the last few days, Chat Noir...'_ Ladybug could only think. He had stolen her heart, only contested by Adrien Agreste, and she still wasn't totally sure what to think. But regardless of that... "Just... Promise me you'll be careful."

"I'll be fine." Came Chat's casual response, as he spun his staff in his hands before he took off. "This is gonna be a _lawn_ day." He joked, before extending his staff, sending him flying into the air towards the Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont, to face the danger alone. While Ladybug hated to do this, she knew there wasn't a choice. She could have gone instead of Chat, but the police force seemed to listen to her a lot more eagerly than they would listen to Chat. It would be easier for her to get a message across.

"Please be okay..." She said to herself quietly, before she turned to find the highest ranking officer that was here. She couldn't hesitate now. She had to do her bit here to help combat the Akuma.

She ran, approaching an officer whom was near the gathering of reporters and civilians. She spoke loudly and with calm confidence, so as not to betray her fear for Chat Noir. "Where is the highest ranking officer with you? I need to get a message across Paris as quickly as I can."

The elderly officer turned around to look at the young superhero, pointing behind her, close to the paramedic set up, just a few meters away. "Lieutenant Roger. He's helping tend to the wounded and reporting back to headquarters right now. He'll be able to help you."

Ladybug had had experience with lieutenant Roger in the past. He had been Akumatized previously, transformed into the totalitarian villain Rogercop, and after that, had become much more cooperative with the superhero duo, and was ready to aid in fighting the Akumatized victims wherever he could. That made things much easier. She thanked the officer, and dashed towards the stands by the paramedics.

It wasn't difficult to find Lt. Roger, as he was giving orders to several of his force. He represented a high authority, and never failed to act on it, using the power responsibly, and with the wisdom that came with fifteen years on the police force. He was a good commanding officer. "Lieutenant Roger!" Ladybug called for him.

The high ranking police officer turned around and gave Ladybug a respectful salute, which Ladybug returned, albeit hers far more relaxed and casual. She didn't even stop walking while she did it. Around him, his subordinates left them to it, carrying out their assigned tasks, leaving the two crime-fighters, one a symbol of hope and bravery to all of Paris, the other a policeman, whom picked up the slack where Ladybug couldn't. "Ladybug. Whats the news?"

"I need to get an urgent message to any officers that you have near the Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont, as quickly as possible! I think whatever caused this is headed over there! They need to evacuate!"

"Lieutenant!"

From behind the two of them, came the call of another officer, whom was a young, fresh recruit, whose uniform was neat and clean, perfectly ironed and pressed. With him, he had a teenaged boy, whom had long, black hair, and wore baggy, scruffy clothing. "This kid came up to me with claims he knows who the attacker was. Thought you might have a few questions for him."

With this new information, Ladybug knew she had to be here for a short while longer, while she gathered information from this teenager. They had been struggling for information, so this was a sure-fire way to acquire some desperately needed Intel. At the same time, she had to get that message to the officers at the Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont immediately, so she looked at the lieutenant, whom nodded in his understanding. "I'll send the message immediately. Don't worry about a thing."

"Thank you, lieutenant." Ladybug said with a sigh of relief, and a nod of approval. Roger left the space along with his fellow officer, reaching for his radio to call any units near the Akuma's destination. She then turned her attention to the teenager, whom was obviously nervous and frightened. "Hello. Whats your name?" She asked, trying to sound as friendly as she could, without also sounding condescending.

"My names Twist..." The boy said, his hands very clearly sweating and shaking. "H-Honestly, I didn't mean it! I proper swear, it was an accident!"

"Calm down." Ladybug said, trying to reassure the teenager as much as she could. From such an outburst, she knew that this person know something important about the attacks. Even the victims identity could help provide some clues about how to defeat him. "I need you to focus. What was an accident? What happened?"

* * *

Just minutes later, Overgrow found himself nearing the next sewer exit. Hawkmoth had directed him to the Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont, the next target of his rampage of destruction. Lots of varied plant life in these parks allowed him to unleash the full extend of his powers in his mission to cause chaos to attract Ladybug and Chat Noir. Once his bargain with Hawkmoth was complete, he would be free to hunt down Twist, and get revenge on him for what he did to him.

They said that power corrupted, but Overgrow couldn't disagree more. Power brought joy. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so good. He was in charge. He was the one people were running from. He was the master of himself.

He approached the nearest manhole cover. According to Hawkmoth's instructions, above this manhole, would be the target. He would be surrounded by plants, and be at his strongest because of it.

Reaching into his bag of seeds, he produced two Actinidia Arguta seeds, and told them, "Grow." Actinidia Arguta is a species of vine, and under Overgrows command, they erupted from their seeds and shot the manhole cover clean off its position, and into the sky. Where it would land, Overgrow cared little for.

Commanding his plants, he was lifted up by one of his vines, and was temporarily blinded by the daylight, but could sense the plants all around him. The grass, the trees, the flowers, and the vines, all around him, all under his very command!

His eyes finally adjusted, and he threw his arms open wide, ready to begin his onslaught with the plants around him.

No one was there.

He had to do a double check to make sure that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him, but he was, in fact, completely alone. He didn't understand it at first, until he heard a voice from beside him.

"Looks like I was right on the money."

Overgrow turned his head around, to see his target sat atop a tree branch. There was Chat Noir, looking smug and self praising. He held in his hand his own artificial tail, spinning it around, like a tiny lasso. His target. The plan had worked.

Chat had arrived only about a minute prior, and thanked the various Gods that he had done. The park had been evacuated by the time he had arrived, and he send a silent thank you to Ladybug for that. He was, however, concerned. It shouldn't have taken Ladybug long to catch up to him, knowing her speed. She was far faster than him, and yet, she still hadn't shown up. He wondered, had something happened to her? Had there been a trap or something back at the other park that they had fallen for, or was she simply running late?

It didn't matter, he decided. He had his job to do. Ladybug had done hers.

"Chat Noir." Overgrow stated, staring at the cat superhero. Chat noticed that he had an accent, an east Asian one. It wasn't Chinese, which he could tell, thanks to his fluency in Chinese, so he wasn't sure quite where it came from, but regardless, he was prepared to fight. "I am Overgrow. You shall give me your miraculous, or I shall tear you to pieces."

"Why isn't there ever a gigantic lawnmower, or weed-killer when you need one?" Chat asked with a smug look on his face. "Well, looks like I'm all there is. I guess I'll have to cut you down to size." He brandished his claws, sharp and itching to get into the fight.

Overgrow launched an attack from his vines, shooting them right at Chat Noir with speed. Using his baton to defend himself, Chat leaped off of tree branch he had been sat on, and onto the ground, rapidly doing backwards somersaults off of the grass. Every time he touched the floor, a spike of grass-like blades shot at him, and he had to rely on his Enhanced Reflexes to either block to attack or avoid it altogether. In all his life, he had never expected to be attacked by grass.

His plan was to lure Overgrow into the city, where plant life was far more limited in its scope. He was at the environmental disadvantage here, of that there was no question, and while there was a higher risk of property damage in the city, Chat decided it was worth that possibility. Out here, he wouldn't last very long.

Another vine shot towards him, and he quickly sidestepped it, and grabbed a hold of it with his left hand. When he did so, the vine wrapped itself around his hand, squeezing tightly, causing Chat to let out a small grunt of pain, before slashing the vine in two with the claws from his right hand. Reacting as quickly as he could, he then ducked, avoiding a series of grass blades from connecting with his fleshy body. He didn't want to imagine the wound that a direct strike from these grass blades could cause a human body. He found that here at least, surrounded by grass, trees, and plant-life, he had to keep moving as quickly as he could, otherwise he would be in a huge amount of trouble.

He leaped back once again, finally finding himself a pavement to stand on, so there would be no underground attacks that he could be surprised by. The attacks would now have to come from the front, easy for Chat to keep track of. Never before had Chat been so happy to be stood on stone and cement.

"Come on!" He yelled, taunting Overgrow into coming towards him. "Come and get me if you can, Over- _rated_!"

"Don't be so arrogant, child." Overgrow spat, launching several more vine attacks towards the teenage hero, whom avoided them all with impressive speed, followed by him retreating further into the city, cheering for himself as he went. Overgrow was not blind to the tactic being used. Chat Noir clearly thought that if he was surrounded by buildings, he was absolutely powerless.

 _'How naive.'_ Reaching into his bag, he acquired several seeds, and with a sickening grin, made his way into the city.

Having processed all of this new information, Ladybug knew the stakes, and what the cause of the Akuma was. Twist had explained everything. Who this Akumatized person was, why he had been prone to being manipulated by Hawkmoth, and what his overall target would be.

She knew for a fact that judging on what she had been told, and what she had seen of this persons power, that Chat Noir would be in big danger if he faced them on his own.

She needed to go to help him. Now.

"Twist, thank you very much for being brave. You've been a huge help." She turned to the officer in the room. "Make sure he's taken some place safe until this is all over. If we don't succeed, the Akuma could come after him."

"Of course, Ladybug." The officer complied, saluting the female hero. He then placed an arm on Twist's shoulder. "Come on kid. I'll take you to the LT, and we'll discuss where to take you where you'll be safe."

"Am - Am I gonna be in trouble? I swear, it was an accident!"

"Relax, kid. Mr. Ryuu was fortunate he was smart enough to insure his building. You're just lucky no one was hurt. We aren't going to throw you in jail." The officer reassured Twist as he lead him outside.  
Ladybug was glad to hear that. The teenager seemed genuinely sincere. He hadn't done it out of malice, but out of an accident, and had panicked, like she would have also done in that situation, like anyone would have done, and ran. He had had the courage to step forward and come clean. That would help him immensely.

There were noises of commotion and confusion coming from outside, as well as an increasingly loud whirring sound. It was deafeningly loud, like an engine had been placed right next to Ladybug's ears and activated.

Stepping outside, she heard the rapid chopping in the air of a helicopter, about a thousand meters above her. Everyone's heads had been turned at the sound of such a loud helicopter flying past them. It was a bright white color, and had blue stripes across it. It was a news chopper.

News choppers rarely came out. They were only really sent out when there was a major event going on, like a protest, or a festival... Or an Akuma fight.

And it was headed on a direct path to the Parc-des-buttes-Chaumont.

"Chat Noir..." She said aloud, worry practically dripping from her voice. She had taken too long. She could practically sense the fight that Chat was having with the Akuma from here. All on his own...  
Wasting no more time, Ladybug tossed her yo-yo, and began on her way towards to park, as fast as she could physically move herself.

"Be okay, Chat." She said as she ran and swung across roof to rood, repeating it to herself, over and over again, like a prayer.

"Be okay. Be okay, Chat. You _promised_ me."

* * *

Chat Noir knew he was in a very bad situation.

It had been his hope that Overgrow would become powerless when in a city. Surrounded by man-made materials like concrete and steel, there should have been few opportunities for the Agrokinetic Akuma to utilize his powers. Unfortunately, Chat Noir hadn't accounted for the bag that was full of seeds that his opponent carried. He hadn't had a way of knowing his target had those, so he was surprised when he revealed that he could use the seeds like weapons also. Overgrow was able to transport his power into suburban areas, making Chat's strategy totally irrelevant.

In addition, Chat was running low on time, and there was no way that he was going to be able to get away from this Akuma in time. He had used his Cataclysm ability a few moments ago, when he had attempted to drop a billboard on Overgrow, hoping to incapacitate it. Instead, it had been torn into two. That left him with five minutes left to take down Overgrow. That had been three minutes ago.

"Please, Ladybug, I could really use a hand here..." He muttered to himself. He was low on time, and struggling to stand.

Surrounding them, the remnants of this street were visible, but totally torn apart. The street was upturned in places, and buildings had been battered and destroyed, leaving holes in some of them. Cars had been thrown around randomly, Chat having to avoid a Lotus Ellis at one point from narrowly landing on his left leg. It had been a very narrow miss, which brought up another problem.

Chat Noir was also struggling to maintain his usually high stamina. He had been dodging and avoiding strike after strike from Overgrow's malicious attacks for a long time, and hadn't had any recovery time yet. He had taken several hits already, and could taste the iron in his blood that had seeped into his mouth. Several cuts ran down his face, and a cut from his forehead ran down the side of his face, and over his eyes, making him look like he was crying blood from his right eye. Chat's breathing was also heavy and sporadic. He had never been losing a fight so hard in his life. Overgrow's strikes were very strong, and he was a master at using his powers in order to strike the blond hero where it hurt.

He didn't even pay attention to the news helicopter that was overhead. He didn't even notice it. He was focused on defending from and defeating Overgrow, before any more damage was done to him or the city. The rest of the world was just gone. Irrelevant. There was Chat, Overgrow, and the rest of the world was essentially black and white-noise.

"If you give up your miraculous, you might just get to walk away from this." Overgrow told him, the superiority in his voice clear. He thought he had won. He was confident in his victory. Now he was just toying with Chat Noir.

"Fat chance." Chat said with a smirk, blood showing from his lips and teeth. He refused to give up. Not to this. What would Marinette say if she saw him running away from danger like that? He wasn't just fighting for him. He was fighting for Marinette too.

Summoning reserve strength, Chat Noir charged at Overgrow, aiming for the mans chest. He didn't even know where the Akuma had been hidden, what it had infected, or where to target. In order to be victorious, he had to find out, at least to pass that information on to Ladybug. Various vines and whips attacked him, but he avoided them or deflected them with his baton. He ran, letting out a shrill battle cry as he charged at the villain, using the reserved of speed he didn't even know he had.

At one meter away from him, Chat noticed that attached to his suit, there was a dark purple flower.  
Even without any sort of prior knowledge, he just knew. That was it. That was where the Akuma was hiding. He could just tell, like a sixth sense.

He flung his claws straight for this rose, aiming to tear it into tiny pieces. If he could manage that, the situation might be salvageable. He could defeat the Akuma, and hide while he transformed back into Adrien Agreste, claiming to have be inside the nearby building during the attack. They'd have to deal with the Akuma coming for them again, but that was well worth the price. He plunged for the rose, screaming at the top of his lungs.

 _Just one more inch..._

In that moment, all the air was stolen from Chat's lungs, and he found a vine slamming into his stomach, knocking the oxygen right out of him. He couldn't regain his breath, no matter how hard he tried to gasp. The vine then threw him at full power back a good twenty meters, with him skidding most of the way. He had been so close. He bounced on the street as he was sent rocketing backwards, before eventually stopping, slowly skidding to a halt.

His vision was blurry. All he could make out was his own hand in front of him, trying to gain enough of a grip on the ground to help him pick himself up. He saw a smear of blood just in front of him, and felt the sting of fresh cuts along his entire body. He cursed himself. Had he been just a fraction of a second faster...

Automatically, his face went into the ground. He felt so ashamed. Weak. Pathetic. And the pain made it hard for him to move. He felt like he had been defeated. Like he had let everyone down, and couldn't bare to look them in the face. But he couldn't give up...

 _Beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep..._

That was it. The sound.

Chat's eyes shot open, his breath stopped altogether, and his blood ran cold. "No..." He said quietly. He needed more time. Just a few seconds...

He was covered in a green glow, as he watched from the corners of his eyes, his leather-outfit deteriorate from his body, revealing his pale white skin. To Chat, it all happened in a slow time frame. In the real world, it took maybe half a second.

The first to were his claws and arms. They evaporated into the green light and into nothingness, revealing his nails, his skin, and every cut and bruise he had received during the battle.

At the same time, the leather around his legs went, from his shoes first, exposing his designer trainers and his beige trousers, also ruined and dirty, full of cuts, tears and wear within the fabric.

His body was then exposed, showing his normal white jacket. This was also full of cuts and tears, but had stains of his blood soaked into it. It looked like something that a child who grew up in a war zone would wear.

And finally, the most horrific of all, was his facial mask. It disappeared along with the rest of his clothing. His cat ears and tail left him also, and his hair become neater and shorter again. The blood and cuts and scratches hadn't gone anywhere. His face, usually beautiful, was now battered and bruised, bloody, like tears of scarlet.

He was unaware that the entire nation could see this happening to him right now. Adrenaline had kept him blind to the rest of the world as he fought Overgrow. And that same adrenaline was the only thing helping him to his feet again.

Adrien Agreste struggled to his feet, falling over, and collapsing multiple times. Around him, nothing but silence. The whole world seemed to stand still as he found the strength to get to his feet. He looked like a mess. Beaten, and broken, he still found the strength to stand up, the same fire in his eyes as was in Chat Noir's.

He looked up at the sky. And saw a news camera facing directly at him.

"...Oh no..." Was all he could manage to say. "Oh no..."

* * *

 _He has to be okay. He has to be okay. He has to be okay._

Ladybug kept telling herself this as she made her way to Chat Noir's location as fast as she could move her body. If Chat was hurt, she would never forgive herself. She had told him to go alone. She should have gone. She knew she should have gone, but before she could change her plan with him, he was already gone, flying through the air.

Only recently had she realized how much Chat Noir meant to her. How much he made her feel alive, and how good he made her feel just being herself. He was caring, kind and gentle.

She loved him. That's all there really was to it.

She loved Chat Noir.

In front of her, she saw the new chopper holding its position, focusing on something going down in the streets. They were hovering fairly close to the ground, by helicopter standards, roughly five hundred meters from the street level, keeping a constant feed upon their target.

There was no doubt in Ladybug's mind that what this crew was filming was Chat Noir fighting the Akumatized victim. Part of her thanked the Gods. She was finally there, and could help Chat in the fight however she could.

"Rrrrrrrraaaaaaargh!" She heard his voice as she came into sight of the battle, seeing him being sent flying away by a vine across the street.

"Chat!" She yelled, panicked. She made herself look at his opponent briefly. Roots all over his face, and several large and thick vines around him, surrounding him like tentacles erupting from the earths core, some armed with spikes, others not. He had multiple weapons at his disposal, and had been using them to hammer Chat Noir into submission.

Ladybug would have jumped into the fight right then and there had she not seen the green glow.

Her heart stopped. This wasn't a momentary thing, she could swear she could no longer feel her own heartbeat. Her eyes shot open, wide open, and her breathing totally froze. Mouth agate, and everything around her stopping, she felt like her life just shattered.

She recognized those clothes.

While she knew she should be springing into action to help save Chat, regardless as to if his transformation had worn off or not, she found herself totally stiff, unable to move a muscle.  
Paralyzed, she watched as the figure struggled to his feet. It wasn't just the clothes now, either. It was the hair too, nearly cut, and messy blond, and even the body structure, somewhat muscular for someone their age.

' _It... Can't be...'_

Crimson red blood running down his face, the figure looked up at the sky, only seeing the helicopter for the first time. Ladybug could see his lips move. From the right side of him, there seemed to be only blood running down his face, past his green eye.

She recognized those green eyes too.

 _'No... It can't be...'_

Looking around, the person, battered and broken, searched around the place, looking for something. A weapon perhaps, or maybe an escape route. Something to cover himself up, or possibly some divine angel to aid him in his battle.

That was the moment his eyes locked with Ladybugs.

Her entire world stopped.

It was.

Adrien Agreste.

Chat Noir was Adrien Agreste.

* * *

Tears prickled Adrien's eyes. Not out of the pain he felt. He could handle the pain. That was the easy part. These were tears of shame. He managed to hide them from the camera crew, but he wasn't going to be able to hide the, from Ladybug.

 _He had failed her._

He glanced around, looking for something, anything he could use as a weapon. Anything that was long, and could be used like his now none-existent baton. He thought he could hear Plagg yelling at him to run, but he couldn't even begin to process what words his Kwami were screaming at him.

Stumbling across the street, Adrien located a golf club, thrown out of a shop of a persons house, scattered randomly in the streets. Specifically, this gold club was a 52 inch wedge, as sturdy a weapon as any, Adrien thought.

There was no way he was going to win this fight. He knew that perfectly well. Without his miraculous intact, he wasn't going to win on his own. He wasn't sure why Ladybug hadn't moved, but he was glad she hadn't. This was a mess he had gotten himself into. He had to get himself out of it. Ladybug shouldn't have to risk her life to save him, an idiot who should have been more careful.

But at least, he could try.

With the very last of his strength, Adrien ran towards Overgrow, the golf club in his hands, behind his head, and swung at the nearest vine. This tore one of the thinner vines into two, but a thicker vine then took the hit intentionally. Adrien had thrown every molecule of strength into that attack, and the result had been the gold club bending around the vine as it made contact.

He stared at the gold club for a second before it registered. The next thing he knew, he had been slammed with a thorn vine, across the right side of his face.

 _He had failed. Completely failed. He'd failed Paris, in his efforts to defeat Overgrow. The Akumatized villain was still on the loose, and there was nothing he could do to stop it._

Another strike hit him, this time, smacking into the left side of his face.

 _He'd failed his father. Oh God, what would he have to say about this, provided he ever got out of this situation? There was his prized son, having the ever loving snot beat out of him after failing to be a hero. God knew what sorts of punishments would be delivered to him for daring to defy his fathers rules of leaving the house without knowledge of his sons location._

Another hit to the right side of his face.

 _He'd failed his friends. Nino, Alya. People he truly cared for. He'd lied to their faces, day after day, and it had practically become a compulsory thing he did. What would they think? His classmates would never look at him the same again. Gone were his chances of having a normal life._

Once more, a strike to the left side of his face. Blood and tears were spilling out now.

 _He'd failed Ladybug. His partner. His friend. She had warned him to be careful. She had always warned him to keep his identity a secret. He had even failed that simplest of tasks. How had it been that he was worthy to be her partner?_

 _But worst of all..._

A vine came from underneath Adrien, hitting him with full power with an uppercut strike, slamming into his jaw. He bit his lip as he did this, causing yet even more blood to spill.

 _Worst of all..._

A sunflower, humorously of all things, punched Adrien in the stomach, sending him flying across the street. As he went, a small trail of tears and blood fell.

 _Worst of all, he'd failed Marinette. That kind soul. That cute girl. That girl he'd fallen for so hard, that he had found it nearly impossible to relax, with or without her near him. He had lied to her, day after day, when he went to see her as Chat Noir. He had been too afraid to go as just plain old Adrien Agreste. So he hid behind a mask, a persona, that Marinette said she loved._

 _What a joke._

 _How could anyone..._

Adrien felt himself slam into the wall. His eyes shot wide open, and felt like they were about to fall out. He choked out blood on the impact, which splattered onto the ground. His throat was sore, bright red,, and felt torn, from the violent release of his bodily liquid.

 _...Fall for someone..._

Gravity bringing him down, Adrien fell to towards the ground, barely able to keep his eyes open anymore. He felt his body being dragged down to the ground, but couldn't bear to move a single muscle to break his fall.

 _...So..._

With a sickening thump, the Parisian's broken, battered, defeated body laid there, surrounded by a sea of his own sweat, saliva, tears and scarlet blood. What a mess. How ridiculously battered and broken he must have looked to the onlookers, and now, the nation as they watched him fall.

This was the great Chat Noir. The one who talked himself up, to cover his own fears and insecurities. The one who served happily in Ladybug's shadow, wanting only to be recognized and appreciated by his partner. The hero who had inspired thousands of people, save thousands more, and dedicated himself to helping defend the great city of Paris. The reality of it was, here was a boy who was truly just...

 _...Pathetic._

* * *

 **Que** **dramatic music.**

 **Oh yes, my friends, this one just happened overnight. I went to sleep at a reasonable time, or so I thought. Next thing i knew, six hours had passed, and written half a book.**

 **I told you things would be heating up, didn't I? good things come to those who wait. And now, we're about to see just how much one fact can change the world. Don't worry guys, this story isn't over quite yet. I still have maybe seven more chapters already planned out. This are gonna get good, their gonna got plotty, theyre gonna get fluffy, and we're gonna have a real good time!**

 **You can find more on my Wattpad and my YouTube if you want more from me,**

 **And I will see you, in whatever it is, that I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	7. Acts of Defiance

How he had been thrown, Adrien found himself totally cornered. There wasn't a place where he could duck into and avoid the upcoming attack. Nowhere he could hide. Nothing he could use to block it.

There was forwards, towards Overgrow. That would lead nowhere. His limbs and body needed time to recover, if only for a few seconds, and there wasn't a chance of him even being able to stand up with the way his body ached. And behind him, was a wall. To his sides, was a car, and another wall. Without Chat Noir's powers, Adrien couldn't do anything to escape this situation.

He could hear his Kwami trying to urge him to move, pushing his shoulder with thee little strength Plagg had in his tiny body, trying to convince his human partner to make a run for it. "Come on, Adrien, move!"

Adrien smiled. It was nice to know Plagg really had cared.

But in front of him now, a large, bulky, thick vine, armed to the brink with sharp thorns, slithered towards him. This was the strike that was going to end him. He couldn't escape it, no matter how hard he tried to. His body wasn't going to move for him. It refused to, aches and pains surging all over his nervous system and pain receptors. Even if he could move, he was powerless. Surrounded by a splattered combination of various bodily liquids like sweat and blood, Adrien closed his eyes and accepted his fate.

He smiled to himself.

He imagined Marinette, stood just in front of him, with the smile she always had one her beautiful face. That he had been able to talk to her one final time. To hold her one last time. To kiss her and hug her tightly for one final time. That he had been able to tell her to enjoy her life while she had it. To find someone who would help her feel alive. To help experience it with her.

That he got to say goodbye.

And that he got to say thank you. What they had, whatever it was, it had only lasted a short time. Barley even a week. But never before had he felt more alive throughout this week than he had when he was with Marinette. He wished he could have done more, said more, been more with her. But she was safe. He had that reassurance.

He knew he was breaking a promise to her. He could only hope she'd be able to forgive him. That she'd be able to forget him. That she'd have a happy life. The happy life that she deserved.

Even if it had all been a lie. Pity. Sympathy. Whatever it was. At least he had had it. And he had Marinette to thank for that.

"Adrien, move!" He heard Plagg yell at him, with a loudness to his voice the human had never heard before.

"Sorry... Plagg... I can't move..." He said through gritted teeth and with a smile. His only reply was more insistent pushing, like Plagg was trying so hard to develop super strength to push Adrien out of harms way. He heard the creaking of the vine rising up, preparing to slam down, crushing his body and ending his time in this world. He was ferociously committed to holding the image of the most perfect girl he had ever met in his life in his head before that time ended.

He heard the whistling that signaled the vines falling towards him.

"I love you, Marinette." He whispered.

The next thing he heard, what an erupting crash. And then silence. Blackness, pure blackness, ensued.

' _Funny_.' He thought to himself. _'Being crushed by a huge sentient plant with thorns like serrated teeth feels a lot like... Flying?'_

How did that make any sense? His arm still throbbing, he made himself open his eyes. He was still alive? How in the hell was he still alive? More importantly, how the hell was he flying?! Was his spirit being taken into the heavens, or perhaps...

He looked around, and saw his guardian angel.

Ladybug.

She had leaped into action. Before the final strike, she had leaped into the fray, thrown her yo-yo at Adrien, wrapping around him and firmly securing him like a harness, and pulled him towards the female superhero. She had caught him, and thrown her yo-yo a second time, now swinging across rooftop to rooftop, aiming to get as good a distance between her and the Akumatized plant monster thing as she possibly could.

It had to have been a while since Adrein was just so blissfully happy to see Ladybug as he was right now. He could cry. "Ladybug..."

"You'll be okay!" She told him, swinging from another building, and throwing her yo-yo again. She needed to get him someplace safe. Some place away from the madness of this conflict. She could deal with her own emotions later.

Adrien, meanwhile, simply fell asleep, despite being easily over fifty meters in the air, and hurtling though those streets fast. He couldn't keep his eyes open for a second longer.

* * *

It had been him, all this time.

Ladybug had attempted to clean up the blond models face the best that she could manage, her mind moving at the speed of a bullet train. Her emotions rushing through her heart, her organ smashing at her rib cage like a hammer as she tried to gently clear all of the cuts and wounds that now littered all over Chat's face. Adrien's face. His face would bruise for a while, but he would survive.

Peacefully, Adrien was sleeping. It was little surprise, given the intense beating he had just survived. How he had survived that was beyond Ladybug, but the thanked every single God, past, present, and future, for it.

She couldn't believe it. Even now, watching Adrien's Kwami, Plagg, she believed his name to be, silently sob while gripped to Adrien's chest in sheer worry, she found it hard to comprehend.

Adrien Agreste, the boy she had held deep affectionate feelings for, which had lasted for the better part of a year, was in fact, her same, pun making, occasionally irritating, yet lovable partner, Chat Noir. Statistically, this had to be impossible. Adrien could not be Chat Noir. It fitted together too well. It solved so many problems so easily. It was too good to be true.

It was, in fact, the reality. And seeing the brutal injuries that the teenager had suffered, all because of a poor call she had made, it suddenly was too good to be true. It became awful in an instant. Her bad choice, her failure as the de-facto leader of the two, had resulted in this blood stained boy.

Because of her failure to help him when he needed it. Her body just froze. Paralyzed.

Because of her, his identity had been revealed. She swallowed.

What would happen to him now?

Right now, he looked so peaceful, so calm, so absolutely removed from the rest of reality. The love that she honestly felt right now was nothing short of overwhelming. Despite the danger that was still surrounding them, and the adversity that they had to face, and the struggles they would have to combat now that all of France knew Adrien Agreste and Chat Noir were one in the same, she found herself just contemplating just how much he meant to her.

Chat Noir, her partner in crime-fighting, had fallen in love with her. _Her_. Adrien Agreste, the person she had loved from afar, had fallen in love with her. _Her_.

Chat Noir, a hero to the Parisian people, had proclaimed his love for Ladybug not long after he had met her. He had always flirted with her, and supported her, trusted her and relied on her, no matter what the challenge or the adversity. For over a year, he had been dedicated to gaining the affections of Ladybug, and for a year, she had rejected him...

And he had fallen in love with plain Marinette.

Adrien Agreste, the smart, handsome, kind and gentle perfect boy that Marinette loved with all her heart, who could have had any girl in Paris that he wanted , and she had watched from afar with a faint hope in her eyes that he would notice her...

And he had fallen in love with awkward Marinette.

When she kissed Chat Noir... She had also unknowingly kissed the boy she loved... The boy who she had helped with his various homework assignments after a week off school. The boy she was so nervous around. The mere sight of him made her stomach do swan dives and her heart race. Being around him set her blood on fire.

And she had kissed him.

Ladybug would have exploded in dark red blushes had the situation in their hands not been any more dire than it already was. She had to control these emotions. Adrien was badly injured, and the Akuma was hunting them down. She had to focus.

"...Mari... nette..." She turned with a jump, hearing his weak, quiet whispers. He was stirring, starting to wake up, slowly, but certainly. His eyes flickered, and he looked around himself for a moment with burred vision, trying to make sense of his surroundings, before his eyes rested on Plagg. "Oh... Hey Plagg." Adrien greeted his partner, with a weak smile.

The tiny Kwami had never been more expressive in the entire time he had known Adrien. Huge tears swelled in his eyes and ran down his cheeks, before he clung onto his human partner once again, as tightly as the magical creature could grip. "Adrien... Waaaaaaaah!" It also marked the first ever time the Parisian model remembered hearing his magical partner cry.

Despite his surprise, Adrien couldn't stop himself from weakly smiling. _'There goes his claim of having an indifferent attitude towards me.'_ He thought to himself as he held his Kwami closer gently with his hands, so as not to crush the tiny black cat-like creature. The tiny creature would get dehydrated if he kept crying so much. A tiny body was only able to hold so much water.

Keeping his hold on his partner gentle get firm, Adrien looked up, to see Ladybug just watching them. He found that he couldn't read her expression at all. She was somewhere between aloof humor and cryptic despair. Clearly he'd been a mess when she'd stepped in to save him, and she had taken the task of cleaning him up herself, so now he looked less like a slab of meat left to bleed out, but still possessed many cuts and bruises. Ladybug was no medic, but her work had been good enough.

"Ladybug..." Adrien acknowledged her presence. She didn't really react, like she was still processing that her partner was in front of her, totally unmasked. Nothing hidden anymore, Adrien attempted to lighten the mood, a cheeky grin appearing on his lips. "I guess the _Chat Noir's_ out of the bag now, huh?"

"How can you _possibly_ be making jokes at a time like _this_?!" Ladybug's instant response was sickeningly filled with worry and concern. She could not comprehend how he was so calm. She wasn't sure if she admired it or hated it. Her worries were running through her head right now like a stampede. The petrification of what was going to happen to Chat Noir - Adrien, was making her feel physically ill.

"Well..." Adrien said, looking off to one side. "It's pretty much the only thing keeping me from realizing how utterly screwed my life is now." He sighed, getting up to his feet. Still suffering from pain, however, he had rested, if only for maybe ten minutes or so, but it had aided his stamina some.

Her eyes widened in regret. "A-Adrien..."

A sharp inhale was immediately followed by another sigh from the unmasked hero. "The press knows Chat Noir is Adrien Agreste. The media knows, the country knows... Alya will know by now... Nino will... Father... M-..." He choked on his words at this point, gritting his teeth. "...Marinette will..." Shivers ran down his spine when he thought of her learning the truth about him. How would she react? Bitterly, he laughed lightly. "So much for keeping my identity a secret."

"I'm so sorry, Adrien." He could hear Plagg apologizing to him from his grip, as if it was his fault. "I-I tried to extend the time as much as possible..."

"This is my own fault Plagg, not yours... Thank you for trying, buddy. You couldn't have done any more." He couldn't be upset with his Kwami even if he tried. The sincerity which Plagg was expressing was just... Heartwarming in a word. He knew his tiny friend would never hurt anyone or anything that didn't deserve it. He put on a tough guy act, but he was a soft guy underneath that. Adrien's own regret however was palpable. There was so much more he could have done to avoid this outcome. A thousand opportunities at each fork in the road, and he had chosen the wrong one at each turn. "...You were right, Ladybug." He said, with a heavy heart. "I was cocky. I charged in without thinking... And now look where we are."

The female superhero's heart broke upon hearing those words. Such cruel speaking towards himself... He was so critical of himself. In school, he always carried himself with a humble, yet calm and confident persona, friendly and caring. He never talked down to anyone, despite sitting atop a vast fortune, fame, and social standing. Going out of his way, he had placed himself at their level intentionally. Displayed solidarity with people from lower standing. And while he had done all that, he had done it with a smile. She'd admired him from afar for such a long time...

Seeing him like this crushed her spirits.

But it also filled her with determination. His life was shattered to pieces now. There was nothing that could be done about that now. The damage had been done. The world now knew about the truth behind Chat Noir's identity. Gone was his privacy, and his security. Everything in his world had been destroyed.

So she would help him pick up the pieces.

What could she say to him right now without giving away her own identity? Should she reveal herself to him now?... No. Not here. There were already far too many complications as it was. Having her own identity revealed was just going to make matters impossible to deal with. Her own secret being revealed to the entire planet was no way to help Adrien right now. Behind closed doors, perhaps... But she got the feeling he wasn't quite ready for such a reveal anyway.

"Adrien..." She began, with a deep, sharp intake of breath. "I could never, ever, _ever_ , have asked for a better person to be Chat Noir." He looked at her, so she looked right back. "A kind... Caring... Smart person. Someone who was born in a position where they had every advantage over other people, but lowered themselves to everyone else's level, not out of pity, but out of an eagerness to belong with people they cared for, far more than any sort of standing. Someone who willingly gave up a part of themselves to become the superhero Chat Noir... Someone who risked their life... Not just for Paris... But for me as well." Placing a hand on his shoulder in sympathy, yearning to actually hug him, she said to him, "You don't _need_ a mask to be a hero. You're already pretty heroic to me."

From his dulled eyes, came life again, and from his deflated face, a smile erupted once more. His morale boosted, he came to accept what cards he had been dealt. He knew for a fact the life he had as it were before was over. There wasn't anything they could do about that. But he could adapt. He could overcome. He wasn't alone.

"...Thanks, Ladybug." Was all he was able to say to her, lost for words to respond to her kindness. He genuinely wondered, really, how kind was it possible for one person to be?

Their tender moment was ruined however.

They heard a crumpling sound in the distance, not too far away, surrounded by greenery growing at an abnormal rate. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Overgrow was nearby, trashing the city as he went along. He was like a one man walking force of destruction.

"I don't suppose you learned anything while you were late to help me fight this guy?" Adrien asked, leaning over the edge of the building to get a clearer look at the carnage that was being committed. He saw a limousine being tossed from a different street into the one he was looking over. Not a good sign.

"I did." Ladybug admitted, watching the same carnage as Adrien, keeping a hand on his shoulder in case he fell. "He's a botanist who ran a flower-shop in the northern areas of the city. His shop got burned down recently because of an accident with a teenager called Twist. He's from Japan, and he's pyrophobic. There's nothing else worth mentioning."

"I think his Akuma is in a rose that's pinned to his chest." Adrien added to that list of facts, pointing at the vague area he saw the rose on his own body, roughly below his right collarbone. "I was so close to actually getting my claws on it too..." This whole mess could have been avoided without that one split second delay.

It wasn't a lot of information, and at best, it was slap-dash, and at worst, unreliable. There was no way of knowing if the pyrophobia was even still in effect with this Akumatized villain, but that was what they had to work with. They were working with information that they had no reason to suspect was true or accurate... But what choice did they have?

Considering their options, Ladybug decided it was time for her to employ her secret weapon. The worst case scenario was her own identity being revealed... But that risk was worth taking. She stepped back, and threw her magical yo-yo into the air, spinning it around as the glow occurred in a spiral. "Lucky charm!"

Her powers of luck manipulation manifested themselves in the young superhero's lucky charm ability, providing an object that she could use to obtain the most optimal result.

The downside, however, was that this was often very unapparent, and required some creative thinking. Solutions were never immediately obvious. There was always some sort of surrounding factor she had to consider for the optimum result. This time was no different.

This time, her object took the form of a cylindrical object, covered in red, and with black polka-dots. At the top, a small nub, like a release valve at the top. It fell into Ladybug's hands, and she recognized what it was instantly. She felt her veins press against her forehead.

"A can of deodorant? What on _earth_ am I supposed to do with _this_?" She asked, looking irritated at the can she had been given. She could swear her power had a mind of its own, and that it just liked messing with her.

"Wonderful." Adrien muttered sarcastically. "What're we gonna do, freshen him into submission?" Glancing around, he searched for a way to help the situation, when he noticed a convenience store nearby. It was a corner shop, one you wouldn't normally go in unless you were short on money or wanted to get a soda before class. The kind that sold a wide range of things despite being very small. It gave Adrien an idea. "Ladybug, take me to that shop down there, on the corner of the street. I might have an idea."

Trusting in her partner, Ladybug grabbed hold of Adrien, and leaped down to the street level, just in front of the shop he had pointed out within a few seconds. Limping his way inside, Adrien scattered several objects onto the floor while he searched, until he quickly returned, holding a metallic Zippo lighter.

Whatever was in the can of deodorant, it packed a punch. Requesting the deodorant canister from Ladybug, Adrien aimed the canister to an empty section of the street. He understood the science of what he was doing well. When he sprayed the can over an open flame, the smaller molecules that were released caught fire, and those flames passed their flame on to the ones behind it, and they then spread further apart from one another in height and diameter, essentially creating a makeshift flamethrower.

In this case however, it produced a blindingly strong red flame, that erupted and expanded up to twelve feet in the air.

A Chat-like grin appeared on Adrien's face. "That'll work." Turning to Ladybug, he explained his thinking. "I'll go down the front, distract Overgrow with this little trick." Holding up the lighter and the deodorant can, so Ladybug could clearly see then. He then pointed along the rooftops, showing her a flanking route. "You go around him, while I keep him busy. Go around him, and crush that flower, and get rid of his Akuma before he does any more damage."

The logic was solid, based in the information that they had. Overgrow was, to the best of their knowledge, pyrophobic. A fire could be a very good way to distract him while someone sneaked around from the side. Ladybug was faster, by far. She stood the best chance to get closer to Overgrow without being spotted before it was too late.

But Ladybug _hated_ this idea with a passion. "Adrien, you're injured! You need more recovery time! I'll take care of this, you just rest!" Her love of the boy/superhero blinded her to her usual rational thinking.

"This guy is far too tough for any one of us to take on our own." The blond Parisian told his female partner, while he ran over his cuts along his face, showcasing them to her. "Take a look at what happened to me. This plan needs both of us to do our part, Ladybug. I can't destroy his Akuma. You need to capture it once it gets out of his rose anyway, and with these injuries, I can't run fast enough." He clutched the canister and the lighter. "This is the best I can so."

Looking her in her eyes, she saw he was pleading with her. "Let me do this one final thing, before everything changes." He begged.

Everything in his life was about to change. For better or worse, neither of them could know. Things would be riskier. Deadlier. And it could be far more difficult to act as Chat Noir.

But that was all tomorrow.

Today, he was still able to do this.

The red and black superhero didn't want to allow him to do this, this risky, dangerous plan. She wanted him safe, out of harms way. If something happened to Adrien, to Chat Noir, now she knew the truth about him... Never, would she forgive herself.

But at the same time, she couldn't deny him this final act of freedom, either.

Her fists tightly clenched, she would have kissed him as Marinette. Now though, she forced herself to restrain herself, no matter how painful it was. "...Okay."

* * *

He had been so close.

Overgrow had been mere seconds away from completing half of the deal for Hawkmoth. The deal to attain his freedom to wreck havoc as he desired. He had Chat Noir pinned down, unable to move. His victory was assured.

Until Ladybug swooped in and saved the unmasked hero.

For want of a better word, Overgrow was utterly enraged. Furious. Angry was an understatement. He wanted blood.

He hadn't heard from Hawkmoth since the fight, which struck him as rather odd, but regardless, his plan hadn't changed. His anger only fueled the plants around him, slamming them randomly into buildings and concrete around him, lashing out in acts of random anger.

"Oh, Over- _grow_ up."

A familiar voice, and a constant source of failing puns. Overgrow recognized the voice well, along with the speech ticks that the boy possessed. Very slowly, with daggers in his stare, Overgrow turned around and saw the unmasked Chat Noir standing in front of him, roughly 50 meters from the Agrokinetic Akuma.

He was still clearly damaged from the battle they had engaged in earlier, cuts and slashes still apparent where they had been planted, and he seemed to be weaker on his feet. Without the power of his miraculous to boost his physical attributions, he was about as effective as any other citizen of Paris.

"Come to beg for mercy?" The Akumatized villain asked with an air of smugness. He knew he had been followed by the news chopper. He had wanted them to follow him. He wanted people to know how strong he was. And now, they were going to see the superhero of Paris beg for his life.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm afraid that's not quite why I'm here." Adrien explained, aiming to keep this conversation going for as long as he could. Every second bought gave Ladybug more time to get into position.

"Then why are you here?"

"I'm here to make a deal."

Curiosity raised inside Overgrow. In his current state, what could this boy do to harm him? He could afford to let his guard down slightly. "A deal?"

"My miraculous." Adrien said, displaying it very clearly for Overgrow to see it on his fingers, his hand tightly held together in a fist. The silver metal reflected in the sunlight, making it shine in the alloy material. "I give you this, you stop trashing Paris." Aware that the news camera was on him, Adrien did the best he could to make this look as genuine as possible. He could only imagine what the people he knew were thinking right now about this entire escapade. "Sound good?"

"What's stopping me from simply crushing you and taking your miraculous from you?" Overgrow asked, vines behind him poised to strike at anything that moved. "My orders are to take them. Not make deals with you."

"Suit yourself." Adrien said with a dramatic shrug. "I'm the only person who knows who Ladybug really is. You know, the other miraculous holder." He bluffed his way through this conversation to the best of his acting ability. He knew he had done a good job when he saw the vines behind the plant based Akuma lose some tensity. His confidence boosted, he went on, pushing his target to come to a conclusion prematurely. "That interest you? Okay then, I'll sweeten the deal. My miraculous and Ladybug's true identity, and the location of her miraculous, and in return, you stop trashing Paris. That sounds like a pretty good trade, right?"

On paper, it was an excellent trade. With both miraculous in his possession, Overgrow would have fulfilled his duties to Hawkmoth. With that came the promise of total freedom. The freedom to hunt down Twist however he pleased. All in one grab. That was an excellent deal indeed.

"Deal." He said, sending a vine over to Adrien. "Place your miraculous on this vine."

"Whatever you say, plant boy..." The model focused. If he did this even a second early or a second late, he really would be crushed by this plant man. The vine slithered its way to Adrien's foot, rising to roughly his rib-cages height.

In that instance, Adrien acted.

He opened to palm of his hand, showing the Zippo lighter he had taken. He flipped it open, and slammed on the striker, making the flame come to life, orange and rising high into the sky, the smell of petrol emanating from the device. At the same time, he reached for the canister of deodorant he had attached to his waist, and lined the two up. In a split second, Adrien hit down on the release value of the deodorant, causing the flame to ignite, burning the vine in an instant.

Shooting away all of his vines, Overgrow broke into a sweat. His pyrophobia still in place. This could work.

Without saying a word, Adrien started to walk towards Overgrow. He couldn't run, thanks to the pain in his body, but he could at least walk somewhat quickly. Many vines came his way, with the intention to knock the improvised flamethrower out of his hands, but whenever one came near him, Adrien doused it with a burst of reconsidering fire. Just like the man behind the act, the vines were afraid of the fire.

He only needed to keep this up for a few more moments.

"What happened to that bravado, Overgrow?" Adrien asked, sending another helping of fire out towards the Akumatized victim. All he needed to do was keep his attention. Ladybug would be getting into position now. He just needed a few more seconds. to keep his attention, by whatever means he had to. Even if that risked aggravating him again.

He just needed to keep Overgrow's attention.

Staggering back in the face of the hot substance, Overgrow found his back to a wall, quite literally. Fire so close to him... It was unbearable. He dare not move, for fear of anything around him, or on him, catching flame.

The desperation he felt fueled one final act.

A final strike, one of the vines swung from behind Overgrow, landing right into the Parisians stomach, one again. This one came at full force, like a rhino attacking a hunters jeep. Adrien felt like he'd been hit by a land-rover, blood flying out of his mouth in large chunks, rather than the droplets previously. The impact made him drop his equipment, and his eyes shoot open wide out of surprise. He had certainly felt the hit with that strike. Pushing him away, the vine tossed Adrien away like a rag doll, sending him flying, landing head first about twenty meters away, and making him bounce, like a skimming stone.

"No!"

By the time Overgrow could have reacted, it was already over. A speedy charge, a phenomenal and violent punch to the throat, and a swipe, was enough to bring Overgrow to his knees, gasping for oxygen as much as he could.

The plan had worked. Ladybug had the Akuma in her hands. She had never before felt this level of hate towards one of them. Without remorse nor mercy, the slammed the accursed dark rose into the ground, and stamped on it as hard as she could. From the broken petals, came fluttering the Akuma, attempting an escape. Ladybug shot this down with record speed.

"You're not going anywhere!" She yelled, throwing her yo-yo as a capture device, trapping the tiny troublemaker. For the first time in her year long hero career, Ladybug didn't want to de-evilize the Akuma. She wanted to _destroy_ it. She wanted revenge for everything this one evil creature had done. For everything Adrien had had to suffer. For all the damage it had caused. For the reveal of Adrien as Chat Noir. For the injuries and cuts and bleeding, and the pain that the blond Parisian had been through, because of this one tiny creature.

But she knew that her job wasn't to seek revenge. She did her job, and de-evilized the creature and set it free, despite her yearning for revenge against it. She knew it was the right thing to do. For some reason, the newly released butterfly hung around her for a while, like it wanted an award. It took everything Ladybug had to not scream at the insect for what it had done. "Get out of here before I change my mind..." Was all she could say, bitterness seeping from her lips. Tossing her yo-yo into the air, she declared her next technique, that would hopefully, set everything back to normal. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

The power spread throughout the city, repairing every single bit of damage done over the course of Overgrow's rampage. Buildings returned to their original state, the holes, cracks, and newly grown plants over them, all vanished, restored to their original condition, like it had never happened. The upturned tarmac resettled itself in the roads and pavements, structurally sound as ever before. The plants returned to their original conditions, and the cars repaired themselves, and even went back to their original parking places.

At her feet, a black, bubbling foam seemed to fall off of the villain known as Overgrow, and revealed a confused, thirty seven year old Japanese man, unsure of what had happened, or how he had gotten there.

And like that, their greatest challenge so far came to an end.

All caught on national television.

"Ladybug..."

As she turned towards the brave Parisian, tears automatically made their way down her cheeks. He stood there with a fresh cut across his head, and several re-opened injuries around his head. Blood seeped from his mouth and dripped off his chin, and he looked like he had been crying crimson again. He stood with poor posture, his right leg doing most of the supporting work. His left eye was closed, and his right eye was only half open. His blond hair was now completely messy now, and sweat soaked him to the bone.

Despite this, he still found a way to smile. With a shaky arm, he mad a fist, and held it out at arms reach.

Their signature celebratory fist bump. He was far too far away for her to return it, but there it was. Their signal of victory.

"Mission... Accomplished." He said with a Chat-like grin. As he finally got those words out, his legs gave out, and he fell to his knees, and then his body fell forward too, crashing into the road with a hefty thud.

As he fell, he smiled lightly and closed his eyes. _'I wonder... Did Marinette see me?...'_

"Adrien!" He heard Ladybug cry, and heard her footsteps rapidly approaching him. He never managed to open his eyes to see her though.

' _Funny_...' He thought, surrounded by darkness. ' _She sounds just like Marinette_...'

* * *

Finding himself in a pure white space, Adrien felt no pain. He felt no worry. No fear. He felt... Rather relaxed actually, provided he had no idea where he was, and whatever it was, wherever he was, it seemed to defy all laws of logic and physics as he knew it.

Had he died? He didn't know. If this was death, it certainly wasn't too bad. He'd prefer to be alive, but he wasn't going to complain about this state of existence. It felt like nothing mattered to him anymore.

Except for Marinette.

 _He wanted to see Marinette._

Walking along the plain that had no floor nor ceiling for a while, Adrien considered and reflected on what had happened to him. His fight with Overgrow. His identity unveiled to the nation of France. It was probably global news at this point. But he felt untroubled by it. Like it was happening in some fictional manga or anime. It felt so insignificant to worry about here.

So much of the real world seemed so petty right now. Like he was watching a feud between insects. It was just something he didn't feel the need to concern himself with.

"Adrien..."

Heart stopped, eyes wide, and praying that he hadn't imagined that angelic voice, he turned around to see if he was right or not. ' _Please be there. Please be there. For the love of god, please be there.'_

There she was. Marinette. Everything about her was enhanced to perfection. Her blue hair glistened and waved ever so lightly in a nonexistent wind. She wore her usual blue jacket, covering up her normal white shirt with a flower printed on it underneath. The common jeans she wore, that he knew she had been planning on making design changes to. Her skin was smooth and comforting just to look at, and her face was very lightly pink. And best of all, her beautiful blue eyes shone, and her smile was hear melting. She stood barely a meter away from the dazed model.

"...Marinette..." He said unconsciously, walking towards he, and hugging her tightly, pulling her into a deep kiss, which she returned. There was no warmth, no taste, none of the regular things there that characterized a kiss with her, but the knowledge he had done it was enough to make his heart start pumping.

"Where are we?" Adrien asked, looking around, his shoulders still on Marinette's shoulders. This whole dimension reminded him of the time he was digitized by Pixelator. "Are we.. Dead?... Wait, how the heck did you die?"

"You are not dead." Marinette told him, calmly. Her voice patterns and mannerisms were far off what he knew they were. "This is just a dream. You are in a hospital. Ladybug took you to the best hospital in the city, and made sure no reporters could find you. You have been unconscious for about six hours. You will wake up soon, do not worry."

He was in a dream? To be fair... He'd heard weirder things. Had he? He didn't know. But for whatever reason, he simply accepted it. Maybe because it was coming from Marinette, he found it easier to accept it than any other logical explanation. "Okay... So how did you get here?"

"I did not." Marinette replied. "I am your minds perception of Marinette. That says a lot about you, does it not?"

"It sure does..." Adrien agreed, feeling his heart pump. It explained the kiss at the very least. But that aside, that was his image of Marinette. Perfection. "People only really dream when they need to process information, right?... So... Why are you here?"

"I am a part of that process. Consider me a method of venting your deepest feelings. You cannot hide them from me, anyway." The personification of Marinette replied. Whatever Adrien had to do, he would do here.

With that knowledge, Adrien's hands began to shake. There were so many things he wanted to say to Marinette, the real Marinette. So much he wanted to explain. So much he wanted to make up for. "Marinette... I'm..." Tears, although they didn't really exist, ran down his face. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... I broke my promise... I lied to you... I... Oh God, I'm so sorry..." Pouring out his heart to this essentially fake Marinette, the emotions he felt were the real ones. The guilt. The regret. The pain and the love. They were all real. "I love you... I love you so, so, so much... I never wanted any sort of pain to fall your way... I... I was selfish in keeping coming back to you after that kiss... I just love you so much... With the mask, as Chat Noir, or without it... I love you..." The more he spoke, the more he wanted to talk, until his own dreamed up tears stopped him. "I'm so sorry..." He wept to her, on his knees in front of the mental perception of the girl he loved.

As he said all of this, she began to fade away, into nothingness. Panic gripped his heart, and he tried to grab her as quickly as he could. Had she grown tired of him? Did she blame him? He practically begged her, "No! Don't go!"

"Marinette exists in the real world." The incarnation replied simply. "You simply expressed the feelings you have deep within your heart. It is down to you to choose what to do with them."

"Wh-What... What would Marinette say if she heard all that though?.."

"I cannot say. I am only your image of her. I do not contain her emotions or beliefs. Those are blanks you must fill yourself, if you choose to do so." With that, the apparition left Adrien alone, crying silently to himself. The dream as it was called now felt like nothing but a prison. He wanted to get out. He wanted to see Marinette. He wanted to get on his knees, and beg her forgiveness.

 _He wanted to see Marinette..._

"Marinette!" He shouted out the the void as loudly as he possibly could. He wanted to see her. He wanted to hold her.

 _He wanted to see Marinette._

As he yelled this, he was blinded. A bright light. He shielded his eyes with his arms.

"Go." He heard Marinette's voice again, booming like an overlord. "Discover those feelings of the one you love, so that next time you arrive here, you shall be met with dreams of joy."

That was the way out.

Adrien knew on the other side of that light, laid a world that had changed since he had left. A world in which everyone knew who he was. A world in which privacy was practically a thing of the past to him, as he knew that now there wouldn't be a point in his life where he wouldn't be harassed by the press.

For as long as he was Chat Noir, things would never go away. and even after that, he wouldn't live a particularly peaceful life now.

Things were changing in his world, and he wasn't sure if he was ready to deal with them.

But he knew one thing with absolute certainty.

 _He wanted to see Marinette._

With that sole goal in mind, Adrien stepped forward, throwing himself into an entirely new world.

* * *

 **Guys, you have no idea how very tempting it was to end this story here, you really don't, but I can't bring myself to be that cruel.**

 **Now that I've done with the Overgrow mini-arc i had going on, next chapter, we're going to be focusing on the consequences of what has happened to Adrien now that he's been revealed as Chat Noir. I've certainly got a few idea left up my sleeve.**

 **there are going to be dealings with Gabriel and Hawkmoth. For the record, I very much support the theory that Gabriel Agreste and Hawkmoth are the same person, but I don't like acting on unconfirmed information. , so I'm not yet decided on if I'll include that. It's a fifty-fifty thing at this point. Other interactions thought... ho-ho, have I got plans for you guys.**

 **I hope you enjoyed!**

 **You can find more on my WattPad, where chapters come out slightly earlier for you guys, and my YouTube,in which i mess around in Pokemon games, links in the description of my profile,**

 **And I will see you , in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	8. Who He Is

Ladybug had to really throw her weight around in order to acquire the hospital room for Adrien that she had done. She'd had to pull the fact she was a superhero, responsible for saving Paris multiple times, and by extension, most of the faculties lives. By this point, to her chagrin, the staff all knew who Adrien really was, so she had to use that to her advantage as well. It was practically extortion, but given everything that had happened to the two of them, Ladybug couldn't care less. It wasn't something she was proud of, but it wasn't something she regretted either.

It had taken a while, but some doctors had initially agreed with her requests, and it had just been a case of convincing some of the other staff members. Once that had been done, there was the matter of actually moving all the equipment down into the room. Ladybug helped.

She had managed to get him some sort of basement room underneath the hospital, an area that wasn't really commonly used for medical purposes. They had taken a heartbeat sensor, IV, a bed, and various other requirements for medicine down with them, in order to help better treat Adrien. Her reasoning was that if the media and reporters thought he was on one of the higher floors, the less trouble he'd be in if they started looking for him. There was little doubt someone here would say that Ladybug had come in with Adrien Agreste, or that someone saw her come here. She just had to keep Adrien as safe as possible. She had to.

As much as she felt that she had to, she couldn't take a minute to sit down and sort her own emotions out. That just wasn't an option.

Her priority was to make sure Adrien was safe. He was injured. He was vulnerable. His identity had been revealed.

Ladybug could wait for a better time to deal with her problems. They were insignificant compared to the list of Adrien's. She repressed her fears and sadness, and converted into strength as best as she could manage.

"Do you... Can you tell how he's..." She couldn't even bring herself to finish her sentence. She just wanted to know if he'd be okay. Doctors were all around him, attaching various pieces of equipment and applying various ointments to him, she had no idea what his status was. She hoped the injuries looked far worse than they were.

"We're going to have to ask you to wait outside." One of the doctors said, a bottle of peroxide in his hands. Ladybug knew exactly what kind of liquid that was. Whenever she applied it to her own cuts, it stung like holy hell.

"Is he going to be okay?" She asked again, desperate for an answer.

The doctor, who looked to be in his early twenties, sighed and looked at her, passing the bottle to another member. "Nothing looks fatal, but he's going to be unconscious for the next few hours. There were a lot of us watching your battle, and some of us are concerned about possible toxins entering his system." Ladybug's eyes clearly widened at this comment. "To minimize the total injuries, and to eliminate the risks of toxins spreading throughout his body, we need to do a full body check. And for that, again, I have to respectfully ask you to leave."

Toxins? Poison? It made sense... They had been fighting a plant based Akuma, and plants were known to carry toxic elements within them. It certainly wasn't uncommon for a plant to be poisonous. In fact, it was very common. That thought just hadn't occurred to them. They were too focused on avoiding the immediate threat, and not the secondary threat. Adrien's difficult walking... That pain throughout his nervous system... Could that be the effects of those toxins?

"Please..." She said, sounding like a pathetic excuse of a hero. "Take care of him..."

* * *

To support the idea that Adrien was on one of the higher floors, she made her exit via one of the top floor windows. To her dismay, there was already a rather large number of reporters at the entrance to the medical institution, blocked by several medical members and, to her surprise, the police, acting as guards to the buildings. She wasn't sure if they were doing this because of the respect they felt towards her and Chat Noir, or if they were acting on the mayors orders, although, knowing Chloe's attitude towards Adrien, the former seemed rather more likely. She had probably pressed her father into sending some sort of guard to try and win Adrien's favor. But all the same, Ladybug was glad to see them there.

She couldn't stand waiting outside the room as the doctors had asked her to, so she decided she needed to go home. She needed to make sure no one got suspicious. Alya would have seen this news, there was absolutely no doubt about it, and there was no way she had not messaged Marinette about this.

Ladybug threw herself at the highest speeds she could accomplish, moving so fast, people who actually managed to get a glimpse of her barely saw her for more than a second. At that sped, reaching her home took her only ten minutes, but her arms were totally exhausted when she did arrive.

Her mind was a mess. There just wasn't any time for her to think clearly.

She re-transformed back into Marinette, making sure no one saw her, and dashed into her bedroom via the hatch in the roof of her balcony. There was her phone, resting on her desk. Cautiously, as if picking it up would cause it to explode in her hand, she pressed the button on the side of it to activate it. Five notifications. All from Alya. She swallowed.

Peeking at them, they had only been left a minute or two ago. But there was serious alarm, even in the writing. Everything with in capital letters, a habit Alya had of writing in whenever she was surprised or excited.

 **"MARINETTE!** " The first message said. The second one was the exact same message underneath it, sent separately, a mere fifteen seconds after the first one. **"THE NEWS. TURN IT ON NOW.** " Was the third message. Marinette already knew where this was all going. She dreaded to think what the news stations would be like right now. Every channel would be talking about Chat Noir and his identity, non-stop. It would be like this for days. " **IT'S CHAT NOIR**." " **ADRIEN**!" Were the final two.

Marinette had to force herself not to cry right now. This had to be the reaction of nearly all Parisians. What would happen to Adrien now that they knew? Who could know?...

She was about to put her phone on her desk again, when she received a call, unsurprisingly, from Alya. She was hesitant to actually answer it, because all she'd be doing was helping this fierce fire ignite further. But then again, she had to keep up her image as Marinette... She sighed in defeat, she hit the accept button.

"Girl, have you _seen all this?_!" Wasting no time with introductions, Alya already started asking questions, and her blunette friend was unable to tell if they were asked in excitement or in a panic. Alya was by far a bugger Ladybug fan than she was a Chat Noir fan, like the majority in Paris, but something gave Marinette a feeling a lot of people would be changing their minds soon. Her tan-coloured friend was unlikely to be one of them, but there wasn't a chance in hell she was going to pass this reveal up. She would freak out. It wasn't surprising either. She had spent a long time trying to figure out theirs

"Yeah..." Marinette said. She gave herself the persona of being absolutely blown away by the news, not excited, not disappointed, but simply surprised. She loved Adrien. Adrien had been revealed to be Chat Noir. She needed to act accordingly.

"Just ' _Yeah_...' ?!" Alya yelled back. Marinette could hear rustling, so presumably her friend was getting ready to go out somewhere. It was a good job she had come home, otherwise Alya might have come to her house and revealed that she wasn't home. "Girl, did you even pay _attention_ to the news?! It's _Adrien_! I was right!"

Marinette sighed, remembering the time where Alya had gone over a theory she had of Adrien being Chat Noir. She had brushed it off at the time. What she wouldn't give to go back in time and act on that information before it ended up like this. "Sorry... I-I'm just..." Making a noise that sounded a bit like a childish explosion, Mairnette tried to describe what a mind being blown would sound like without words. "Like, poof, you know?... Do you - Do you know how he is?" That was a question that most people would ask, right? Especially if they were friends with the person in question.

"I don't know! Me and Nino were going to go to the hospital before all the reporters wind up there!" That explained the rustling sound, Marinette thought to herself. "You gonna come with us or what, girl?"

"I... I'm already outside the hospital." She lied. This at least worked as an alibi. "There's already a lot of reporters here. I don't think we'll be able to see him..."

"We'll try and find you once we're there!" Alya called back through her phone.

Once the call ended, the young superhero allowed her head to hit the desk. Everything was happening so quickly, there hadn't even been time to acknowledge her own emotions yet. She noticed her hands were trembling in worry, and her knees felt weak, making standing a bit difficult. But this was, in a roundabout way, good. This gave her the excuse she needed to get out of the house. To be out of the house until the later hours, without making her parents suspicious. They would understand. They knew Adrien, and had guessed their daughters feelings for the model.

Throwing on a black jacket, the blunette grabbed her phone, her bag, and made a step to leave, before she just stopped, suddenly. She felt her emotions getting the better of her, no matter how hard she tried to suppress them.

"Marinette?..." Despite hearing her Kwami calling her name, she didn't respond.

Well, more accurately, she couldn't. Tears had forced themselves to the front of her emotional status, and she felt an overwhelming desire to cry. She bit her bottom lip, and felt her eyes water up. She was on the verge of breaking down and sobbing into her wooden floor. This was all too much. Chat Noir was Adrien, Adrien was possibly poisoned, and all anyone seemed able to think about was who Chat was, not how he was, after suffering so much pain.

Were people really so _heartless_?

"It's okay to cry, Marinette..." Tikki tried to reassure her human friend.

"No..." Fighting back her sadness, and shaking her head, she refused. "Its not... Not while Adrien is still in that place... Its not right... I don't have anything to cry about. The only one who is allowed to cry... Is him..." She regained her composure, and took a few deep inhales, before she opened the hatch in her bedrooms floor and went to exit the house.

To leave her house, she had to go through the bakery. Where he mother and father were. She had to prepare herself for a second before she went to pass them. They were normally attending the main reception at this point, dealing with customers and selling their baked goods.

Going through today, there were only a few customers, maybe four or five, their eyes totally glued on the television screen that her parents set up in the service area, for those whom wanted to enjoy their treats immediately, in a warm, friendly environment. Thought the atmosphere in there today was less warm and friendly, and more wonder and bewilderment. People weren't there particularly to eat baked goods or trade conversation. They were there because none of them could bare to tear their eyes from the television screen. Marinette's parents included.

Upon entering the room, the blunette discovered all this. A few people had purchased baked goods to consume while watching the news. On the screen, there was a reporter going over Adrien's profile, and things like what he did for his father, and where he went to school. Complete breach of privacy, like it was perfectly acceptable to do so. It made Marinette want to take a chair and destroy the set.

She was almost nervous to actually inform them that she was going out. She could probably get away with just leaving without saying a word, bit that defeated the entire purpose of her going. She needed the excuse to stay out late. Very late.

"Maman. Papa." She said, tapping both of them to get their attention. Both of them turned, surprised to see their daughter in the clothes she was in. "I'm going out."

There were things her parents didn't know about her life. Her being Ladybug was one of them. But they did know about her feelings for Adrien. That much could probably be figured out by looking in her room for point eighth of a second. They didn't take long to figure out what was going on. Her father was the one who spoke first. "You're going to try and see that boy, aren't you?" He asked, pointing back at the television screen with his thumb, not turning away from his daughter.

Maybe it was how everyone was acting about the revelation, maybe it was due to her own feelings for Chat Noir. For Adrien. Maybe she was just tired of him already being treated differently. But whatever reason it was, Marinette was feeling immensely angry and defensive about him. "His name is Adrien."

It was a rare occasion for Marinette to ever raise her voice to her family. Very rare. She had to admit, to her parents credit, they didn't snap at her for raising her voice. They understood that she was upset, but despite that, they still pressed back, showing how little they actually understood about her feelings about the whole situation. Her mother spoke this time. "Marinette... I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?" She felt her frustration rising. She really was on a short fuse.

"Because he's... Well, he's Chat Noir." Her father said, dejected, looking at the television screen, as a side-by-side comparison of the two came up. "It could -"

"You think _that's_ why I want to see him?!"

The entire room focused on Marinette now, people having ripped their eyes away from the news broadcast and watching as the teenage girl exploded at her parent's implied accusation. Not once had she ever yelled at her parents like that. Never with such sheer anger or defiance.

Her parents were clearly shocked at the sheer level of ferocity in their daughters voice and face. She glared at them, like she wanted to burn a hole straight though them. Her hands with in very, very tight fists, and she could feel her palms being cut slightly by her nails. She couldn't care less though. Her words came through gritted teeth, bore like fangs. "You think I want to see him because he's the superhero who's been protecting all of us? Because he's a famous model? Because of all of _this_?!" Directing her anger towards the television screen in unbridled rage. Never in her life had she been so purely angry. She barely even knew where it was coming from herself at this point. Regardless, she continued to yell. "I don't _care_ that he's Chat Noir! Did you even see what _happened_ to him?! He got battered, broken, humiliated and is now in a hospital, all because he was protecting yo - all of us, and all anyone cares about is who he _is_!"

Unable to even stand the sight of the stares anymore, she turned and left. Before leaving fully, she stopped halfway through the door. "I'm not going to visit Chat Noir, Maman, Papa." She glared at them once more. She hadn't seen them so shocked in their lives. They hadn't thought Marinette had that sort of fury in her. "I'm visiting _Adrien Agreste_. I'm going to see my _friend_."

 _'And so much more than my friend._ ' She thought, but she dared not say that aloud. She slammed the door shut, and ran her way to her meeting point. There was no doubt in her mind there would be negative repercussions to what she had done now. But she couldn't give less of a damn if she tried.

* * *

Sadness became anger so easily. Marinette had faced so many Akuma, she knew this already. She had never been so angry at her parents before. Did she regret it? She didn't know. She wasn't really angry at her parents anymore. All she knew was that she wanted to start crying again.

It had only been an hour since she had left Adrien's beside, and now the darkness over Paris was starting to set in. It was maybe 18:30. She found herself wondering the streets aimlessly, just waiting for the seconds to pass, so that she could become Ladybug and go and see Adrien again. But she had to let the doctors do their work. She had to.

Looking around, Chat Noir really was the talk of the town. It seemed like there wasn't anyone who didn't know who Chat was now. She knew people would have this sort of reaction of their identities became public knowledge. She had expected this, but deep down, when she saw his face for the first time, she hoped that the city would be more respectful and relaxed with the knowledge.

 _Wishful thinking._

Seconds dragged into minutes, and minutes dragged into hours. Everything felt like it was going in slow motion, like the world wanted to keep her away from the hospital the best it could. Eventually however, the passage of time had to relent, and Marinette found it was 21:45. That had to be enough time passed.

Making her way into an alleyway, she transformed into Ladybug after making sure no one could see her, and then made her way to the hospital. This time, she went at a regular speed, so as to allow people to see her entering the top floors. To help reinforce the idea that Adrien was on one of those floors.

When she arrived at the hospital, she saw a huge number of reporters and citizens had gathered, almost like it was some sort of charity march. The streets were almost packed with people who wanted to see Adrien. There were a huge number of camera crews everywhere, all from different news stations across the country. Ladybug knew her crush was used to reporters... But this was insane, even by his standards.

There was no doubt in her mind that as she climbed in though the top window of the hospital, some reporter was commenting on it. She hopped in, and quickly made her way to the nearest elevator, and made her way to the floor she had gotten Adrien in.

The trip in the elevator took longer than she would of liked, and she found herself rubbing her thumb against the palm of her hand, and biting her lower lips in nervousness. _Had they been able to treat the toxins? Was he okay?_ So many questions.

Once she finally reached her floor, and the doors slid open, she was met by the same doctor she had spoken to yesterday, and one of his colleagues. Both of them had appeared to be discussing something, before they had noticed the superhero exiting the lift. "Ladybug!"

"Doctor, how is he?" She asked, trying to make herself sound at least slightly reserved. It didn't work too well.

The doctor looked at his colleague, whom nodded at him, and stepped into the lift, and hit the button to a higher floor. Once the doors shut, the young doctor was able to smile at Ladybug. "There was toxins in his bloodstream, but we were able to remove them by bleeding them out. He has a few more cuts on him, thanks to us because of that method of treatment, but the rest have healed amazingly quickly. We've all come to the conclusion it has something to do with the powers you and he have. He's healing very quickly."

Tears threatened to run down Ladybug's cheeks.

Placing a hand sympathetically on the young hero's shoulder, and with a friendly smile, the doctor told her in a reassuring voice, "He's resting now. He'll be fine."

"Thank you..." Was all she could say, her voice shaking and covering her already quivering lips with her hands, fighting every single cell in her body to not burst into tears right now. "Thank you..."

"You're free to visit him if you like." The medical staff member told her. "He's in the same room that we left him in."

Thanking the young doctor once again, Ladybug made her way down to the room Adrien was in at a speed that wasn't quite running, but wasn't quite walking either. She moved as quickly as she could technically get away with.

She thanked every God known to man that Adrien was okay. She thanked them again and again and again. She had been so worried, so straight up scared for him...

Opening the door, she saw him again.

He looked so much better than he did after the fight, with the blood wiped off his face, with no more clearly obvious cuts or bruises. Scattered on his face and his arms were plasters and band-aids, to keep the cuts that were still there together so they would heal faster. Across his chest was a large cut, from presumably where they bled him out to remove the toxins from his system. There wasn't anything like a life support system, or an oxygen mask on his face. He just looked like he was sleeping. The duvet was only up to roughly his waist, a fact that, under any other circumstance would make Marinette shoot blood from her nose. There were several defined muscles on his body, all hammered with scratches, cuts and bruises. Though that was to be expected. His arms also rested atop the covers, as opposed to underneath them, so they doctors could check his arms for cuts or injuries further.

Despite all of that, he looked amazingly peaceful. His eyes were softly closed, and his breathing regular, an inhale for one second, a pause for a second, an exhale for a second, a pause, and repeat.

To avoid waking him up, Ladybug was careful with her steps. She wasn't sure if he could hear him or not, but she didn't want to risk it. She made her way to a nearby chair, and pulled it up next to the bedside, and sat down. This seemed to provoke no reaction from the blond boy, so she took that as a sign that he couldn't hear her. If that was due to him being a deep sleeper, or simply incapable of hearing, she didn't know.

"He can't hear you." A voice emitted from Adrien's direction, which shocked Ladybug. From underneath the covers, hovered Adrien's Kwami, Plagg. He resembled a black cat. "I've tried. He's out cold."

"You're Plagg, right?" Ladybug asked, holding out her hand for the hovering creature to land on.

"Yeah, thats me." The black cat said. "And you're Mairnette, right? The one this guys fallen head over heels for."

Her eyes shot right open at this statement. "How - Who - Did you -"

"When you've done this gig for five thousand years, you get pretty good at identifying who else has a miraculous." Was Plagg's explanation. Clearly it was an unsatisfying one for ladybug, so Plagg elaborated further. "I could sense the residue on your person. Whenever someone transforms into Ladybug or Chat Noir, they leave a trace on their person. I can't use it to track Hawkmoth or anyone else though... I can only tell who you are because I work with Tikki a lot. The chances are, Tikki knew who Adrien was the whole time. She would have told you, but its against the rules to tell another holder who possesses a miraculous without their owners consent, and I sort of... Never brought it up with Adrien... Actually, that reminds me." He said, flying out of Ladybug's hand, shooting underneath the covers, and returning with a silver ring. "I think its safer for us if you keep hold of this for now. If the doctors find it, who knows what could happen. If they lose it, there goes Chat Noir."

Despite having to have processed that Adrien's Kwami and her own knew each other, apparently very well, Ladybug simply nodded. Was it safe to transform right now?

The risks be damned.

She allowed herself to turn back into Marinette. Tikki flew next to Plagg, shaking her head in a brief recovery. Plagg didn't say anything to her. Tikki didn't say anything to him. This wasn't the time for a reunion. Not in front of Marinette.

"Could you... Let me know if someone is going to come in, please?" Marinette asked the two Kwami, her voice quiet. She just needed to say a few things to Adrien. Alone. They both understood, and used their powers of Intangibility to phase though the door to keep a look out.

After putting the ring in her bag, she returned her gaze to Adrien, still asleep. She wasn't sure what to feel. Relief he was alive? Anger that she let him get this bad? Hate, towards Hawkmoth for doing this to him? Disgust, to the reporters outside, to her parents? She didn't know.

"Hello... Adrien..." She said quietly. He couldn't hear her. What difference did it make? Something inside her compelled her to talk. Not logic. "It's me, Marinette... I... I'm shocked, to say the least... All this time... You were Chat Noir... You're the last person I ever expected to be my beloved partner... But the more I think about it... The more it makes sense..."

Tears were swelling up. ' _Do not cry, Marinette._ ' She told herself. She had no excuse to.

"It explains... Why you were never in the same room as Chat... How you always seemed to know things only Chat could know... And the allergy to feathers..." She made herself fake giggle at the memory of that. It did nothing to help her feel better. "In hindsight, it was pretty obvious..."

Every Interaction she had every had with Chat Noir came flooding back. Every conversation, every pun he made. Every time he flirted with her. Every time he protected her.

Every time she shot him down. Every time she groaned at his puns. Every time she rejected her.

Every time she let him get hurt.

Every time she let him risk his life.

She couldn't hold them back anymore. Hot streams of water ran down her cheeks and to her face, rapidly released from her tear ducts, and before she could stop herself, she had buried her head into the side of her partners bed, and began sobbing, which only led to her crying more. She had no excuse to cry. She was selfish. How dare she cry? Adrien was the one who was suffering here.

"I'm so sorry..." She sobbed, trying to stifle her bawling as much as she could with little success. "I'm so, so sorry, Adrien... This is my fault... I'm so, so sorry..." She sniffled, unable to even try and hold back the tears not. Her emotions, repressed throughout the entire day came flooding forward like a tsunami. All her anger, all her fear, all her sadness, all her regret, tumbled out from her eyes, leaving her face a wet, soaking mess. "I-I was so stupid... So careless... I-I should have been with you... I should have fought that Akuma... It should be me in that bed, not you... I'm so sorry!"

How could she be such a cruel person? How could she even have the audacity to feel sorry for herself? She wasn't any better than her parents. Or anyone else in Paris. While he was sat here in this state? What right did she have to cry? She was a terrible person. A horrible person.

She didn't deserve the love Chat Noir - No, the love Adrien had shown her...

"Marinette?" She heard Plagg's voice. He must have heard her from outside.

She couldn't bring herself to answer him. Her sobbing was preventing her from doing anything else. Even if she wanted to, she just couldn't do anything else.

The cat-like Kwami hovered over the two of them, looking at the scene that was before him. "You know..." He said, trying to figure out what to say. He wasn't usually an emotional kind of creature. But he felt obligated to try and help this poor girl. "Adrien had feelings for Ladybug a long time before he did for you, Marinette... And I mocked him, every time... 'Cheese is easier than love'. I told him that a lot. When he started to get feelings for you, my reasoning was that he was getting bored of seeing Ladybug... He wanted to punch me. I could tell... And I told him that even I got tired of seeing Camembert... Not often, but sometimes..."

Marinette raised her head slightly, looking at the black creature. She could see and hear genuine remorse from him.

"Whenever he went to see you as Chat... I always extorted him. I demanded Camembert from him... Because it always made me feel disgusted whenever he did it. I don't think I ever really knew why he cared so much for someone else..." Plagg landed next to Adrien. "But... He kept going to see you. Whatever I asked for, he always did. He even me offered unlimited Camembert once... And I ran him ragged the entire day after. He didn't complain... He even smiled... Because he'd gotten to see you, Marinette... I think... I know now why he chose you over something like Camembert..."

Despite her throat still feeling like it had a lump the size of a baseball in it, thanks to all her crying, she asked. "Why?... What's so special about me?..."

"Because you made him feel like he mattered."

Another set of tears ran down her cheeks, this time silently, as she listened to the black Kwami. Her eyes were wide now as he spoke.

"He told me that people see him as a model, as a pretty face, and nothing past that... His own father barely acknowledges him half the time... Just uses him for that pretty face, for his modelling. Even as Chat Noir, he's a hero, and he knows he matters to people that way... But no one made him feel like he really _mattered_. Like if something happened to him, someone would actually care enough to cry for him... Like you are." He heard the Kwami make what she assumed was a small laugh. "I suppose thats one advantage for love over cheese." Plagg looked at Adrien again. He wasn't an emotional creature. He knew that. But that didn't mean he didn't have them. "You're allowed to cry because you're probably the only person on the planet that makes Adrien happy to do what he does."

Tears still streaming down her face, Marinette managed to smile somewhat. If what Plagg said was true... She patted his head softly. "Adrien's lucky to have a Kwami like you."

"Yeah, whatever." Plagg replied, reverting back to the usual personality and speaking manner he used. "Just make sure to keep me out of it the next time you two make out. I don't want anything to do with it. I'll keep to the cheese, myself."

That comment made Marinette, for the first time all day, giggle. "I'll so my best."

Magical residue sparked from the door in that instant, and Tikki popped thought, speeding towards her human partner. "Doctor's coming!" She said, quickly, so as to not waste time.

Quickly drying her eyes, Marinette pushed Plagg underneath the covers again, and Tikki transformed with Marinette, becoming Ladybug once more, just before the doctor came in.

"Everything okay?" He asked, walking in with a clipboard. He seemed very relaxed considering he was working on a superhero, and a model to boot, and was also having to speak to one on a regular basis.

"Yes, everything's fine." Ladybug said, looking at Adrien again. She still had tears in her eyes, but she felt a bit better now. Not much. But a bit better.

"Okay, sorry to -"

"Uurgh..."

Practically snapping her neck a good ninety degrees in half a second, both Ladybug and the medical professional turned towards the incapacitated patient, seeing his eyes flickering and his arms moving. He was making some uncommitted noises of discomfort.

"Marinette?..." Were the first comprehensible words that came out of his mouth.

"Adrien!" Ladybug yelled, running next to him, grabbing hold of his hand as he stirred.

His eyes didn't open for another twenty seconds, but when they did, they closed immediately again in reflex of the light, before they opened again, slowly. He looked around him, scanning the place, before his eyes fell on the polka-dotted hero stood next to him. "Oh..." He groaned in a slight amount of pain, before he managed to get a clear sight on his partner. " Hello, my lady." He said, with a weak smile.

* * *

 **So that's where we're at then guys ^_^ I wanted to make Marinette as similar to me when it came to dealing with an emotional situation like that. She's the type to refuse to cry out of guilt, I think. this was a difficult chapter t write, especially with Plagg. I think that deep down, he does truly empathize with Adrien's emotions.**

 **So, in the next chapter, we're going to be getting a bit more in depth with Adrien's life... but he's got a certain blunette he needs to visit before that can happen : 3**

 **Guys, It would mean the absolute _world_ to me if you could help share this story around. the supports been great, but I'd like as many people to see this, because I honestly feel that this is one of my best works to date, and would love to get as much feedback on it as possible. If you could share it around, follow and favourite it if you enjoyed it, leave a review if you're enjoying everything so far just so I know, but don't be afraid to leave criticism either, you've got _no_ idea how much that would mean to me.**

 **As always, you can find more on my Wattpad, for slightly sooner updates, and my YouTube, both linked in my profile,**

 **And I will see you, in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	9. Where We Stand

"Twenty-Three... Twenty-Four... Rrgh, Twenty- _Five_!" Adrien grunted, dropping his grip strength booster from his right hand onto the bed sheets just in front of him, his breath slightly ragged after the strenuous exercise. He was already seeing the effects on his forearm, which bulged slightly more with muscle.

He had been given grip-strength boosters as a gift from the hospital staff, who said that he was allowed to use them if he wished to, since the injuries to his arm were gone. There wasn't really anything else for him to do.

Sitting up in his hospital room, he sighed. He had been here for two days, while the doctors did final checks for toxicity levels in his blood, and to allow other cuts to heal. the boredom was absolutely unrivaled. He had been bored out of his very skull for the last few days. He had been thinking about so many things, longing to get out of this room and just... do anything. He wanted to see Marinette of course... But he was eager to just being able to walk at this point. Being stuck in this room however, he had had time to think.

He had been weak when he fought Overgrow. He wanted to become stronger.

"You know that over doing it won't help, right?" His Kwami partner asked.

Adrien looked at Plagg. "What else do I have to do in here? I'm not exactly allowed visitors. The only one who can come see me is Ladybug. There's no television reception, no games system... This is pretty much all I've got to entertain myself."

"We could order a cheese buffet!"

Sighing, Adrien took his grip-strength boosters, and began his reps on his left hand. Reaching his forth, he asked, "Hey Plagg... How are you even still here? I thought Ladybug was looking after your miraculous for me? Wouldn't you have had to go with her?"

"I won't disappear unless she puts the ring back into it's original storage space. The box you found my miraculous in." Plagg explained, hovering around the room. "It felt safer to give to her, you know?"

"She said she was going to pass it on to Marinette." Adrien said with a nod. "You made the right choice, Plagg, thanks." He sighed, performing his tenth rep on his booster. "I wonder what she thinks of me now that she knows I'm Chat Noir..."

"Maybe she'll think she'll become a celebrity!" Plagg suggested with enthusiasm, albeit unhelpfully.

"That's sort of what I'm worried about." The human sighed. "I mean, people are gonna want to avoid me to avoid all the media backlash, aren't they? I don't want Marinette exposed to how brutal those guys can be." He shuddered. He had had many run ins with the media in his lifetime. He looked at the ceiling, and in doing so, marked his sixteenth rep. "I want to see her..."

"Really, Chat? _Again_ with the boosters?"

Turning his head to the left, he saw Ladybug standing in the doorway with a bemused yet worried smile on her face. With her, she was carrying several bags for the teenage boy, all in reused carrier bags. mostly bits of food and some fresher clothes.

"M'lady." Adrien said, nodding his head with a smile. "Good to see you again, Ladybug." She had been visiting him at least twice a day, once in the early morning, and once in the afternoon. One day, she had visited him in the evening, just before he went to sleep.

"Good to see you too. Marinette says hello too." Ladybug said with a smile, placing her bags on the nearby table. She had made a habit of bringing Adrien things to pas the time with, often times food, or sometimes a board game, and sometimes, a message of some description. Her visits made this hell all that more bearable. She had recently learned of Adrien's and Marinette's relationship - Well, Chat Noir and Marinette's relationship, and extended her total support, something the blond Parisian greatly appreciated.

"Good to hear from her..." Adrien said with a dreamy sigh.

"Did you bring any Camembert?!" Plagg asked, landing on the edge of the bags, searching frantically for any of his favourite food in the pile. Ever since her first visit, she had made it a point to bring the tiny Kwami a piece of it's beloved Camembert. Thanks to those, Plagg had begun to look forward to her visits as well. Ladybug smirked and pulled out a piece wrapped in foil, and tossed it into the air for Plagg to catch. The sight never failed to amuse Adrien.

"You're like a machine, Plagg!" The hospital patient laughed.

"And you have a one track mind when it comes to Marinette!" He kwami shot back with an equal amount of humor. "You know he used to be like this with you, Ladybug?"

"Did he now?" She paused. "Well, with Chat Noir, I definitely believe that."

"We - We don't need to go further into that!" Adrien said embarrassed and laughing simultaneously. Another reason he enjoyed Ladybug's visits was the humor that she brought with her. When she was around, Plagg and her seemed to up their game to make Adrien feel better via the method of laughter. It certainly helped work wonders.

"So... Whats the news?" The polka-dotted hero asked.

Finishing his twenty-fifth rep, Adrien dropped his boosters entirely, letting them land on his legs. With a mischievous smile, he replied, "I'm free to go tomorrow night... Think they'd mind if I snuck out? I've been stuck in here for two days straight."

"Don't." Ladybug turned serious, her eyes narrowing at her partner in super-heroism. "You need to rest in order to recover. Don't push it. It's far too risky to push it, especially now, you know that."

Sighing, Adrien laid back in his bed. "I know, I know... I just hate been cooped up in here..." It reminded him far too much of being back at home. Speaking of home, he wondered what the hell his father was going to father to say about this entire mess? He was going to have an absolute field day using that as an excuse to restrict Adrien's freedoms, the young blond was sure. Even despite his identity now becoming public knowledge, the beating and reveal he had gone through on television, and the sheer media outcry, his father had made no attempts to get into communication with his son whatsoever. Adrien seriously was beginning to doubt his father even had emotions anymore. Urgh, the media... "How's the crowds looking outside?"

"A few have given up, but there's still a lot of people. I don't think they're going to leave until they spot you... Urgh, I'm sorry. I should have been quicker. Avoided getting spotted." Ladybug said with a bowed head, still feeling the guilt that had stockpiled up inside her over the last few days.

"You got me here. I should be thanking you." Adrien replied kindly. The alternative would have been writhing in agony as toxins spread throughout his body. When you looked at it from that perspective, things could have been much worse.

Regardless, Ladybug still felt massive regret. She was so glad, so, so glad that Adrien was okay, but she couldn't forgive herself for the fact that he was like this in the first place. That she hadn't been able to prevent it. Yet, he was still so kind to her...

Would he be so kind to her still if she knew she was Marinette?

"Chat?..." She asked, quietly. Once she had her partners attention, she took a deep sigh. "I want to show you something." She wasn't sure quite what compelled her to attempt this, but she reached for her earrings. Technically, she was doing what she considered the right thing. If one of their identities had been revealed, it only seemed fair that the other should reveal who they are to the other. How could they trust each other otherwise?

Combined with Ladybug and Marinette's own guilt and worry for Adrien Agreste...

"Stop." Her eyes widened, and focused on the patient. Still with a smile on his face, Adrien held his hand open. "You don't need to show me anything."

"But..."

"LB, I'm here because I was irrational, not because of you, don't think that way. If I'd used my head in that fight and not my overconfidence, maybe I wouldn't be here. The world knows I'm Chat Noir now because I was stupid. That's all that there is to it." Looking at his hand, Adrien could almost see Chat's claws, like they were grafted onto his person. He and Chat Noir were the same person now. Not just to themselves, but to the entire world now. "You always said we needed to keep our identities a secret. And you were right. Just look outside for what would happen if we didn't. It's gonna take some time for us to be able to move as freely as we used to do while we sort this all out. But still, I still completely trust you, M'lady. I don't need to know who you are for me to trust you."

 _'I wonder how he'd react...'_ Ladybug had to think, before she moved her hands away from her earrings and smiled. "That's... Really sweet of you to say, Chat."

"You know you can call me Adrien now, right?" He grinned right back at Ladybug. A few weeks ago, Adrien properly would have killed to be in this sort of situation with Ladybug. Since Marinette entered his life in the way she did, a lot of things had changed very quickly. "I mean, hah, who exactly are we gonna fool now?"

That earned him yet another smile from his partner, but this one was forced, he could tell. He couldn't blame her. This wasn't really something he could make a joke out of yet. The wounds were deep, and were still very fresh. She'd most likely never be able to forgive herself.

They sat together and talked for a few minutes longer, having casual conversation. This was the only interaction with another person Adrien got, aside from Plagg and the doctors, who weren't exactly interested in talking too much. That was understandable, seeing as they were on the clock, but Adrien thought it was more the fact that they felt somewhat intimidated by the hospitalized superhero. They did their job, and spoke to him little outside that, so the blond Parisian was happy to have someone else to talk to.

Although it did make him concerned, how would his classmates react? He was intimidating to fully grown adults, how the hell were a group of teenagers going to act around a superhero? He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. He'd have to deal with those problems as they came.

Eventually, the clock on the wall indicated Ladybug's time was up. It was a Friday, which meant that work, classes, and other myriads of activities would be on during the day. "Okay, I have to go now..." She said with a sigh. "I'll try and visit you again tonight if I can. Other life things have been... Difficult."

"Sorry about that." Adrien apologized sheepishly.

"Not - Not because of you." Ladybug said, trying to reassure him, poorly. "Actually, I almost forgot. Marinette wanted you to have a couple of things." She reached to the pouch she kept on her waist, and pulled two metallic objects. His miraculous, and a set of keys.

His miraculous was a no brainier. It was his. It was what he needed to become Chat Noir. Looking after it for two days must have been stressful, and Adrien was now capable of looking after and thinking for himself, at least regarding his miraculous.

It was the set of keys that was confusing to him. "What're these for?"

"She told me she wanted you to use those if you went to see her." Ladybug replied. Adrien's ears twitched upon hearing that. "I don't think she wants you to leap in through the window this time. Maybe try the front door?"

The young superhero wasn't sure if he was surprised, flattered, or embarrassed more. It gave him a small bit of reassurance that Marinette still did want him around... Which was really all he needed. He took to keys and his miraculous back, sliding the ring onto his finger. He felt far more comfortable with it on now, like he wasn't totally defenseless. Like he wasn't naked without it. "Thanks, Ladybug." He said, pushing his hand back so he could look at the ring from afar on his finger. "Feels better to have it on."

"Just don't do anything dumb." Ladybug warned him with a smile, making her way to the door. She was halfway through the door before she faced her unmasked partner again. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Sure thing!" Adrien replied, his voice peppy, joyous to have his ring back.

Reluctantly, Ladybug then left the room, leaving Adrien with a smile on his face as he inspected his ring again. He felt immensely happy to have his ring back. He wondered what Marinette had thought about it. She had given Ladybug a set of keys for him... So she was expecting him. Or at least, hoping for him.

He couldn't wait to see her.

"Hey Plagg." Adrien said with a smirk. "What do you say to an evening stroll later on?"

* * *

School had turned into a huge media playground filled with rumors and conspiracies over the past few days. Ever since Adrien was revealed as Chat Noir, there had definitely been a sense of wonder and surprise. Bewilderment by some. Even the teachers seemed totally out of it. Some were totally amazed, whereas some were simply unable to comprehend it. Chat Noir had been sat next to them ever since he first appeared in Paris. He had attended school along with them, learned along with them, laughed along with them, befriended them, and out up with all of the i sane happenings around the school.

The only difference was that when those occurrences happened, Adrien was the one saving them.

Chloe had somehow managed to spin the entire situation towards her, and bored everyone to death with. Constantly bragging about how a superhero was in love with her. How she kept up a self-conceited attitude when the entire city was focused on Chat Noir was utterly bewildered Marinette, who could only sigh and cover her ears, not wanting to hear a single word of it.

That aside, simply speaking, the school had been the same place as it was before, but felt alien to a lot of people. There wasn't a break or talk that didn't have Adrien Agreste at the head of the conversation. He was like some sort of celebrity.

And Marinette hated it.

"Girl, you okay?" Alya asked, nudging her friend with her elbow, not taking her eyes off her phone. She had been glued to anything that had a Wi-fi connection, searching up for more news about Chat Noir and Ladybug. Little had been revealed, aside from Ladybug making constant visits to a particular hospital which was a hot-spot of media activity,

"Urgh..." Marinette sighed. "Not really, no... Things have been... Really, really tense in my family and it's... Exhausting." She wasn't even lying. Ever since her outburst to her parents, barely a word had been exchanged between them. Thing shad been so awkward that neither side could bring the,selves to speak. It occurred to Marinette that it was possible she had jumped the gun and overreacted, but she didn't regret doing so. She refused to let her parents tell her that seeing Adrien was a bad idea. The tension between her and her parents was so thick, it was like it could only be cut by a butchers knife.

"Because of Adrien?" Alya asked, looking at her friend.

"Yeah..." Marinette sighed. "Does the news say anything about his health?..." She still kept up the guise of not knowing now he was doing. It was exhausting, but she forced herself to keep it up.

Her friend shook her head. "Nothing's been heard from him since the Akuma attack... But they say no news is good news, right?" Alya said, trying to boost her friends morale.

Instead, Marinette buried her head in her arms on the desk. She didn't want to be here. She hated being here. She wanted to go see Adrien. She wanted to talk to him. Make him smile. Make sure he way still okay. The moments in which they were separated turned into a living hell for the blunette girl, filled with worry and anxiety. Focusing on schoolwork felt like a lost cause.

Going anywhere now would be a nightmare for Adrien. The media would be hounding him at every turn... His classmates would... She had no idea what, but Adrien returning here felt like a recipe for disaster.

"Mind if I say something?" Alya asked, putting her phone down with a serious tone in her voice. "I think this may be your last chance to tell him how you feel. Everyone knows who he is now... And you know, there's a lot of people who like him, and a lot more who liked Chat Noir... So, if you want to win him over, you need to do it as soon as you get the chance."

All Marinette could do was laugh silently to herself. Her friends serious tone made her feel like bursting out into laughter. She knew she was trying to help, but she couldn't help but think about how her friend would react if she found out about her and

Chat, and by extension, Adrien. She masked this by giving her friend a weak thumbs up along with a disheartened sigh. Although it did make her think, would, or rather, she she and Adrien be open about their relationship? Marinette had no problems admitting that she loved Adrien. She had no problems admitting she loved Chat Noir. But others might. And the backlash that could hit her and her family could be relentless...

But she didn't care. If that was the price it was for her to hold Adrien's hand in public, she was happy to pay it.

* * *

"That stupid cat, that stupid cat, that stupid cat, that stupid cat, _that stupid cat_!"

Adrien was gone. He had left the hospital earlier that evening, and Ladybug could have punched a hole straight through the wall in both anger that he had run off without telling her, and worry that he might hurt himself.

She should have seen it coming, hindsight told her. He had expressed wanting to leave, and she had given him back his miraculous, his ability to leave, the very same day. How had she not expected this to happen?

"He shouldn't be too badly injured." The doctor told him. "We were keeping him here mostly for rest, so him leaving a day early shouldn't put too much stress on his body... In theory, anyway. He may have slightly lower stamina than usual, because his body hasn't yet recovered to it's prior levels of physical fitness, but..."

Ladybug was, in all honesty, barely paying any attention as she made her way though the corridors. By the time the doctor reached about halfway through his explanation, she couldn't even hear his voice anymore, drowned out by her own thoughts. If Adrien, or Chat Noir, had left, there really were only a couple of options for him to go to. The first was going back home, to acquire new clothes, and other such things he would be in serious need of. The second option was...

Marinette's house.

Thankfully, no media sources indicated having seen Chat leaving the building. His black leather-like suit would help him camouflage into the darker skies over the late Parisian night. That was good. He had been smart enough to wait for a time where his outfit would be well suited to blending him into the environment.

She had a location in her head at least. Adrien had said over the past two days he had wanted to see her... She had wanted to see him too, without the mask separating the two of them... But she didn't want him hurt even more than that!

"Right!" She said aloud, to the surprise of the doctor whom had been explaining Adrien's condition to her. "Thank you very much." She added, to make sure that it didn't seem like she was chastising the doctor. "I think I might know where he's going. Thank you very much for everything you've done for him. I'm completely indebted to you."

"Not - Not at all!" The doctor replied, his hands in the air in front of him and a small blush in his face. "It's the least we could do after everything you've both done for Paris. If you ever need me again, just come back."

With any luck, they'd never meed to set foot in a hospital ever again, Ladybug hoped to herself. Regardless, she thanked the doctor once again, dripping with honest and genuine gratitude, before she leaped out of the window, and used her yo-yo to swing her way back to her house.

She only hoped he was okay.

* * *

Despite a sharp pain located in his right leg which occasionally flared up, Chat Noir could not be feeling better to be out of that hospital room. He leaped around the city with sped, gusto, and total freedom. He moved at speeds he had never quite reached before, making sure that no one from the media had been following him. He had moved with speed and grace.

He took a very brief stop at his home to acquire a change of casual clothing. He snuck into his bedroom, which thankfully, didn't have the windows locked, and crept inside, quickly choosing whatever clothing he could see. He ended up with dark grey jeans, a completely black t-shirt, and a beige hoodie. They would do fine. Basic, plain, and not at all outstanding. Pretty much what he needed at this point.

"I don't think Ladybug is gonna be too happy with you doing this..." Plagg said, separating from their transformation, hovering around his human partners room. It had been such a long time, that Plagg felt like he was visiting home again for the first time in a while.

"Think of it this way." Adrien suggested, not even slightly wavering in his plan to visit Marinette tonight. "If we live to hear Ladybug complain about it, we still live."

"And to think I thought you were a bit of a pushover at one point..." The black Kwami sighed.

"Love makes people do crazy things, I guess." Adrien smirked, quickly changing into his recently acquired clothes. He planned to show Marinette the real him. Well, she probably, in fact, certainly, knew who he was... But they had never really been together in the romantic sense without his mask on. He planned to change that tonight. ' _I just hope she isn't... Upset that it's me...'_

He reminded himself that she had given Ladybug a set of keys that she had given him... That at least indicated she wanted to see him... He smiled to himself, re-transforming into Chat Noir and leaping out the window before anyone knew he was there.

 _But where would the fun in going though the front door be?_

* * *

When he finally reached Marinette's house, all the lights were off. That wasn't surprising, seeing as it was rather late, roughly 1AM. It was far later than Chat Noir had wanted to be here. He had left the hospital at roughly 8PM, but he had had to be extremely careful as to not get spotted, and to avoid the media as best her could. He had dome several laps around the city to avoid this happening, hoping to throw off and lose anyone who may have actually seen him.

He would have left the house right then and there if he didn't see a small light flash up for a few seconds. Like a phone, before it switched off again, enveloping the room in blackness again. Marinette's room.

What was she doing awake at this hour?

Chat leaped over the street, and peered in through her window. The darkness that encased the city was so dark, only the moonlight was providing any luminescence in her room. He saw the young girl, her legs against her chest, and her head on those, and her hands together, her fingers drumming against one another, and biting her lips. She was nervous. Anxious. Like she knew he was going to be showing up tonight. Or maybe she was hoping he would, and was trying to stay awake as long as she could in case he did.

The young superhero wasn't sure if he was more touched, or if he was more worried about her. She clearly looked stressed and scared beyond all comprehension. Was that because of what had happened to him? Was it his fault she was like this right now?

 _'No more of this._ ' Chat decided to himself. He took his right hand and, with a brief quickening of his heartbeat, tapped on the glass three times.

Marinette's head shot up after first glance, thinking that for a second, her ears were playing tricks on her. When she finally saw Chat, hanging there, and waving wt her, she felt a flurry of emotions attacking her at once. Anger. Sadness. Joy. Love. None of these even came close to summarizing how Marinette was feeling right now.

Using the keys he had been given, Chat opened the window, and quickly leapt inside. He saw that Marinette seemed to have blocked the trapdoor that lead out of her bedroom with a stool, tape, and other sound-and-entry blocking things. They could talk pretty much freely, and not wake up anyone in the house.

He shut the windows and turned around at her. She was nod stood up, and she looked pissed. Her hands were by her waist, tight, and shaking due to the sheer amount of force she was applying, nearly cutting holes in her skin with her nails. Her teeth were showing, almost like a snarl. Her glare was something fierce, something he had never seen in her.

Nor had he seen in Ladybug.

"Hello, bugaboo." He said with a smirk, and a two-finger salute. A brief look of confusion erased her anger. "Up until this late, and for some reason, Ladybug keeps visiting you, and figured out about us? Not to mention the hair?..." Under normal circumstances, Chat Noir would had smacked his head in the wall for not figuring out the link sooner. It was only after being away from her for so long, and spending time with Ladybug, had he managed to make the connection, as well as seeing her here, awake without reason to be, which practically confirmed it. "Kind of a giveaway."

Marinette didn't even attempt to deny it, but her anger returned with a force. How was he able to make jokes in a situation like this? His entire world was crashing down around him, and he was able to make jokes? She felt so mad that he was barely even taking the situation seriously. And more over, that he had been so stupid as to leave the hospital like he had done!

She glared at him, and silence fell between the two, with Chat seriously considering bailing on this entire visit and returning when he thought that she had calmed down.

But shortly after, her anger melted away, unable to keep the look on her face any longer. Tears started to prickle at her eyes, and before she knew it, her anger had just dissolved into tears or joy. Her eyebrows, previously buried into her glare, relaxed as her stare turned into a look of beautiful sadness. He hands unable to keep up the level of grip they had, and her legs shaking, she just threw herself at the hero, resting her head in his chest, along with her hands.

" _You stupid cat_!" She yelled at him, using her hands to lightly hit his chest. Thanks to her weakened state, her fists felt more like cotton balls than they did fists. Her tears were now freely falling from her face, and her sobbing was drowned out by burying her head into Chat's chest. "You stupid, stupid cat! You idiot!" She cried, falling to her knees, and Chat fell with her, until they were both basically hugging while on their knees.

"I'm sorry." Chat said, holding her close while she cried into him, feeling tears of his own falling from his face. Never before in his life had he been so simply overjoyed to be next to Marinette. She cared about him. He could feel it from her right now. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

Both of them held onto the other for support, clinging to the other one like a dark force was about to take the other away forever. They were holding the single most important person in their lives right now. Neither of them wanted to be apart from the other ever again.

"Marinette..." Chat said, once he'd regained his composure. The girl he loved so dearly was still sobbing in his chest. He managed to push her away from him so he could look at her. Tears still ran down her face with incredible speed, making the young hero wonder how she wasn't totally dehydrated yet. He managed to smile at her once more. "I want you to watch this." He said, he held up the ring on his finger, and tapped it once, triggering a premature de-transformation as he willed it.

The blinding light stung Marinette's watery eyes for a moment, before she quickly adjusted. Once the green light had faded, she was blinded, but only for a second. She felt Chat's suit disappear around him, and his hand, which she held tightly, became warm, soft skin. Once she regained her vision, there he was again. Adrien Agreste.

"Adrien..." She said quietly, her tears still refusing to stop.

"I need to say this like this, Marinette." Adrien told her, placing a hand on her cheek, wiping away her warm tears as he did so. At the same time, he tightly held onto Marinette's hand in equal measure to how tightly she held his. With his green eyes shining in the darkness thanks to the moonlight in which they were both sat on, he poured his very heart out to her.

"Marinette... I love you." He said. Just saying that would have been more than enough for Marinette. But he didn't stop there. "I love you, so, _so_ , so much. You mean... Literally everything to me. Everything. I was selfish.. I kept coming back here, night after night after that kiss... I... I'm so sorry that I lied to you like I did, not telling you who Chat was. You had to find out like everyone else... And you deserved so, so much better than that..." He wept also, silent cries as tears ran down his own face. Tears of genuine, unmatchable remorse. "I... I never wanted this to be how things went for us. For Ladybug and Chat Noir... For me and you... And I'm so, _so_ sorry..." He looked at her deeply in her eyes, trying to show he was being totally honest. He didn't need to bother. She trusted and believed every word he was saying. "During that fight with the Akuma, despite everything... I thought about you until the end of it. I love you, Marinette. So, _freaking, much_."

This time, Marinette wiped the tears from the models face. She couldn't begin to be as articulate as he had been... But she could be even more heartfelt. "Adrien... I've loved you for a long... Long time... I couldn't even begin to think of the world without you... With Chat Noir... I don't know what happened to me... But I like to think that part of me knew it was you... And drew me to do it... You don't need to apologize... Nothing has changed in how I feel about you... I... I love you, Adrien..."

Both of them had finally confessed their love for one another. Tears still ran down their faces, but they couldn't be happier. Holding one another close, for the first time without their masks, they pressed their lips against one another, melting into the warmth both of them shared.

Which made it a shame when Adrien's right let flared up, forcing him to separate from the kiss.

"Rrrrrgh!" He grunted, grabbing his upper leg, grunting through gritted teeth.

"They - They said you should be okay!" Marinette said, panicking slightly. Had they been wrong?

"Well, to their credit, they did say ' _No running across rooftops all over Paris like a maniac._ '" Adrien joked through gritted teeth and a forced smile.

Helping her love to his feet, Marinette placed him on her bed, where she wrapped up his leg in some leftover cloth she had, and made him lay down. "I think you should stay here then. I don't want you falling off a rooftop going home." She added with a smile. "Besides... Maybe it would be safer if you stayed her for a bit anyway... The media is gonna hound you... And your father won't be happy."

"He never is." Adrien said with a smile. Honestly, he doubted his father could be more angry with him than he already must be. So, he agreed to Marinette's suggestion, and she laid next to him, holding his hand tightly.

Their worlds were falling apart. Adrien's life as Chat Noir was now public knowledge, and the media would never let it drop. Any chance for normality in the young models life had been shot through the heart, and Marinette now faced the additional backlash of being associated with the cat-themed hero.

But the two of them had each other. What else could they ask for?

They were happy.

* * *

 **The emotions writing this ;-;**

 **Next chapter or two, we really start moving on to what this story is all about ^_^ I don't really have a lot to say about this chapter, I feel like it speaks for itself.**

 **what I do have to say is that the support from all of you guys has been nothing short of outstanding, from all the reviews and everything you've been saying and doing - It's just awesome guys, thank you all so much for just reading this ^_^**

 **As always, you can find more from me on my Wattpad for slightly quicker updates, and my YouTube for more videos from me, all located in my profile.**

 **And Ill be seeing you, in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	10. Hand We're Dealt

There was a moment the next morning, when Marinette realized that Adrien wasn't there when she woke up, and that she couldn't feel the warmth of his hand, that she almost cried in dejection. She honestly thought she might have dreamed the entire thing, or that she had imagined it. That thought process felt like a knife to the heart for her, and she just laid there, staring at the ceiling, wondering what cruel twist of fate had led her to these musings.

Sitting herself up, to her joy, she found that she had jumped to conclusions.

Adrien was stood up by her desk, obviously putting his weight more onto his left leg than he was his right and had in his hand her sketch book. He had obviously been skimming through it for a while. He knew of Marinette's artistic talents, and when he had seen her sketchbook on her desk, he had been unable to resist looking at some of what she had drawn. As a model, he had an eye for fashion. And Marinette evidently did too.

"Morning." The blond boy said with a huge smirk on his face, looking up with his eyes, his head not changing his heads position, like he was leering over the book. He'd seen the books contents before, but none of her more recent works.

"Morning... What're you doing with my sketchbook?..." Marinette asked, rubbing her left eye. Seeing Adrien this early in a morning, after being awake for literally thirty seconds, felt weird to her. She was happy, but she felt weird. It was one thing to wake up and see his face on a poster... but quite another thing to wake up and see him in the flesh. There wasn't really a better way to start the day though, she quickly decided.

"Marinette, you have got some serious talent here." Adrien told her, slipping through more of the pages, inspecting her various drawings and designs. He knew she had artistic talent, and he was aware her designs were excellent for an amateur, but this, that he was seeing now, was on a whole other level. "They're creative, they're original, your actual drawings are great..."

Blushing was her automatic response. She was still getting used to all of this emotional adjustment. It still was like she had taken an explosive to the brain when she thought about it. Adrien was Chat Noir. She loved Chat Noir. Chat Noir loved her. Adrien loved her. It was still a lot of information she had to process all at once for the blunette's fragile state of mind.

Still, she couldn't be happier.

"Thank you..." She acknowledged the boys compliment, but still... "Next time ask me before you look through that! It's embarrassing!" It did feel embarrassing. She didn't particularly know why. Maybe it was because they felt inadequate compared to the person she loved.

"And wake you up?" Adrien asked, putting her pad down. "You looked so peaceful though..."

A small smile snuck its way onto the young girls face, as well as a very faint blush. Deciding to just let it slide for now, Marinette got out of her bed and stretched. "I had a really good dream." She said. She couldn't quite remember it now. She thought it was a dream that no one knew who Adrien was, and that the fight with Overgrow had never happened. That none of this bad stuff had happened yet. She wasn't sure though. All she knew was that she had enjoyed it. Once she had finished, she went over to Adrien and asked, "How's your leg?"

"I still get a few flares of pain every once in a while, but nothing I can't shake off." He told her with a reassuring smile. With another couple of hours without any serious strain, he'd be able to go leaping around as Chat Noir again. "I'm fine, Mari."

Hearing Adrien call her 'Mari' made the blunette blush. Everything still took some getting used to. Hearing that nickname from Adrien still took some getting used to. However, she still slid her arms underneath his and hugged him. "Good..." She rested her head on his chest, and closed her eyes, relishing in the comfort just a small amount of physical contact with him brought her.

Standing stunned for a few seconds, Adrien didn't waste too much time in returning the warm embrace. Whereas Marinette's hands had located themselves on his back, his hands wrapped themselves around her waist, and pulled her closer towards him. They stood there for at least a moment in a comfortable silence, wrapped up in one another's arms. For both of them, this was like a dream.

Granted, Adrien was aware of the fleeting peace that they were enjoying. There wasn't a lot of time for them to simply enjoy one another's company without the worry that someone was watching them. His identity as Chat Noir, despite being what brought him and Marinette together, was going to be the thing that put a huge level of strain on their lives.

Not to mention, when, and if it was revealed that they were...

"Hey, Marinette?..."

"Yeah?"

"Urm..." Adrien found himself blushing, looking away to the left. He found it suddenly very awkward and embarrassing to ask. Wasn't it a given anyway? They had kissed so many times. Hell, the previous night, they had shared the same bed for the nocturnal hours. Couldn't they just assume that they were... Marinette's head peeked up from his chest, looking up at him. Her cute face didn't help Adrien's current issues with asking her. "Uh... Are we, uh... Are we dating?"

An equal level of embarrassment found its way to the young amateur fashion designer's face. this was a question she had wanted to answer ' _Yes_ ' To for over a year, and had always felt her face explode in heat and color whenever she imagined it. Now that it was happening... Part of here wanted to separate from Adrien and huddle into a corner so she didn't have to face the embarrassment "I um... I... Thought so?" She felt her heart beating against her chest, attempting to burst out of her and escape the embarrassing situation.

It was odd how both of them thought that asking such a simple question would cause them both such fluster, they realized. They found it easier to kiss than they did to simply confirm that they were indeed dating. Perhaps, Adrien thought, that that was because it felt like they were fully committing to the other. That it was like saying that they were fully dedicated to making this work. Such pure emotion would cause anyone embarrassment.

Despite that embarrassment, both of them could only smile at one another once it had been said, although both of them were as red as the other was. They both leaned in closer, and shared a brief, yet loving kiss. It was during those brief seconds that Marinette thought that if she could wake up each morning to such a wonderful experience, she would be more than happy to deal with any of the embarrassment that the two awkward teens shared, and the negative occurrences that she would have to face due to being with Adrien.

Today was a Sunday. The one day of the week where the two school-teenagers didn't have to worry about attending meant that they had only a single day to enjoy themselves before total hell broke loose on Monday. And that was assuming Adrien even planned to go back to school. Marinette had a feeling that he would be planning on doing that. He actually enjoyed going. Had fought for it for so long, so it was heavily unlikely that he would use this as an excuse to miss a few days. His dedication to his public school life was admirable, but it worried the young girl too.

Adrien also realized this just as much as Marinette did, and he had no intention of skipping classes the next day. He knew that everything had to be faced sooner or later. He preferred for it to be sooner. But that did nothing to help the crippling nervousness he felt towards doing it. Walking through the streets was going to be... Certainly an experience to say the least. Best case scenario, he thought, was people just staring at him. The worst case was half the city chasing him.

He could only hope that people would just... Get over it quickly.

* * *

 _What can I do?_

Having been produced a dumbbell to use for weightlifting purposes, courtesy of Marinette, whom claimed they were her father's, Adrien had to ask himself that same question, over and over again.

 _What can I do?_

 _How can I help make this work?_

 _How can I be with Marinette, and not make her suffer thanks to the media?_

He could already imagine the sheer amount of attention she would receive once the public knew. And it wasn't going to be a private thing for the two of them. It was going to be like a celebrity marriage, where the entire planet watched their every single move. As a model, Adrien had had enough of that. Now a model and a superhero. He could already imagine the headlines.

Grunting as he did another rep, he considered what Nino would think about all of this. He didn't have his phone, but he could already imagine that it was filled with roughly six hundred notifications from the various contacts he had on there. Would Nino feel betrayed? Would he be understanding? He had been such a good, loyal friend to Adrien... He hoped he hadn't betrayed his trust.

There wasn't even any thinking about Alya. She'd want an interview. There wasn't even a shadow of a doubt that that's what she was going to be after. He wasn't honestly too worried about Alya, given her interest in Ladybug and Chat Noir from their debut. If any one person from their school was going to be fine with the revelation that he was Chat Noir, he was beyond confident that it would be her.

Then there was everyone else. Adrien had no doubt Chloe would attempt to instigate a relationship with him the minute she saw him. At least this gave him a good excuse to flat out turn her down, end her irritating displays of affection, that he seriously doubted were genuine anyway. Everyone else though, all bets were off. He had a reasonably good relationship with people like Max, Kim, Rose, Juleka and various others in his class, but he found it unlikely that those relationships would not be placed under some strain. Maybe some of them would be enthusiastic about the fact he was a superhero. He could only hope that they weren't enthusiastic to the point of obsession though.

He sighed, as he did another rep. It was truly a double edged sword.

 _And then there was Marinette..._

She had transformed into Ladybug and ran to his house, to pick up some extra clothes for him. She had been completely insistent on him staying at her house for a few days, at least until the inevitable camp-site of tents and reporters that would be swarming his house left. He had tried to say that he could go home, but she had simply refused to hear any of it. Eventually, he had submitted, but he couldn't help but feel like a hindrance to her.

 _What can I do?_

'Maybe I could just do an interview or two'. That was always an option, he supposed. If he just did them, maybe that would be enough to dissuade other reporters. And it would be an opportunity to let the whole world know about his point of view. How he wanted things to be.

Another rep. "Plagg? What would you think if I just did an interview with a channel or two? You think that would help get them off my back?"

"Well, I'm not exactly a secret now, am I?" The Kwami said, hovering around the bedroom. He came and floated near Adrien, who was sat on Marinette's bed as he did his arm-strengthening exercise to help him be a tougher fighter. "If you're looking for my opinion, I'd say go for it. Just don't let them know about the miraculous too much. All they need to know is that I'm part of what helps you do your job, but unless I will it, nothing will happen."

"That's not technically true though, is it?" Adrien asked, looking at the levitating magical cat-like creature. "I've made you transform plenty of times when you didn't want to. Mostly when you're trying to eat Camembert."

"Do you think Marinette will bring back some?!"

"Maybe. Focus, Plagg."

Sighing, his inhuman partner continued. "Well, it's a rational deception. If people knew they could become Chat Noir just by stealing your miraculous, then you know that would make people come after you, and that puts you and Marinette in danger."

The human felt his heart get stabbed just a little bit when he considered putting Marinette in danger.

"Telling the world that I'm what does it, but that unless I want to make you into Chat Noir, nothing happens... That would make anyone with half a brain realize trying to kidnap me is totally pointless, and that minimizes the risk to you and your girlfriend." Plagg summarized. He put special emphasis on the word 'Girlfriend', just to toy with Adrien.

Impulse yelled at Adrien to deny Mairnette being his girlfriend, but he had to stop himself. She was his girlfriend, right? She was... That information was still going to need some time to process. He nodded at Plagg quickly, before returning to his thought process.

He had never had a girlfriend before. Seeing he was a famous model, and was considered to be very handsome by the general population, that information would probably shock anyone who didn't know what his father was like. He had been very strict about the people he would allow Adrien to interact with. Girlfriends had been totally out of the question. So the honest truth was he had no idea what to do, what to say, around Marinette.

His love for her wasn't in question. Rather, it really was the etiquette he had to think about right now.

She deserved someone who was going to treat her right. Someone who could take her on dates, and act accordingly. He had enough knowledge about attending formal dinner parties that if he wrote it all down, the book would probably be thick enough to beat a goat to death with. Despite all his training in formality and etiquette, he knew nothing about taking the person you loved on a romantic date.

So many things to consider...

He knew being with her wasn't going to be easy. But then again, he thought, what, worth having, was ever easy? He loved her. He truly did love her. He would do everything in his power to make sure she knew that, and to keep her safe from danger. He would do anything to make sure she got to live a comfortable, quiet life. He loved her. So much.

While he thought about this and smiled, it was only then it occurred to him. What would her family...

Vision focusing, and an awareness of his surroundings just only now activating, about thirty seconds late, Adrien looked up at the trap door that acted as the only way in or out of Marinette's room, short of jumping out a window or off the room. The latch was undone.

And there stood Marinette's parents. Both of them. Simply staring at Adrien, their eyes wide in shock and surprise, as well as some disbelief and a hint of fear mixed in there. Adrien returned the same luck, still holding up the dumbbell from his previous rep.

The situation could not have been more awkward. A very large, bulky French male, and a small, petite Chinese woman were both staring at the young model, whose name had been all over the media for the past few days as the secret identity of a superhero, who was looking at them with the same level of total unawareness of what to do or what to say. How long had they even been stood there? What had brought them up?

Then it occurred to Adrien. The noise he made when talking to Plagg. They must have heard that, realized it wasn't their daughter speaking, and ran upstairs, expecting to be dealing with a burglar. Instead they found a teenage boy in the middle of a workout, and a hovering cat like creature next to him.

"Urm..." Adrien said, speaking first. What in the hell was he gonna be able to say that was going to be able to defuse this horrendous situation? He prayed to God that Marinette was on her way back. ' _Please, God, let Marinette be on her way back.'_ He stuttered for a few more seconds, before he raised his other hand and waved lightly. With a soft, quiet voice, he whispered a greeting. "Hello?..."

Totally understandably, they both looked horrified. Adrien's face mirrored theirs. How could they not be freaked out by this? From their perspective, some total lunatic had broken in, done something with their daughter, and was now using weights for a workout session on their daughter's bed. Could there be a more disturbing sight for any parent?

 _'For the love of God, Marinette, please...'_

Like a true angel, in that moment, Marinette came down the ladder leading up to the balcony. The creaks in the floorboards were heard before the young girl was actually seen, and when she did come downstairs, she wasn't holding any of the clothes she had apparently gone to get Adrien, which struck him as odd, but at the same time, if she had had them, it would have made explaining things twice as difficult. Adding breaking and entering to the list of things here would not have helped matters in the slightest. Hearing her voice was like a God-send. "Adrien? I think I got some -"

When she actually saw the situation in front of her, she froze up just as quickly as everyone else had, her eyes widening far more than anyone else's. There really was no way she could pass this off as a friendly visit. There was a literal superhero in her room. Literally the focus of all the media in the country, located in a tiny bakery. Worse, they had seen Plagg. There was not chance to hide anything now.

Both of the young heroes looked at one another, silently exchanging words. Both looked nervous, and were completely terrified right now, but they had little choice. It was Marinette who spoke first, rather quietly, but firmly all the same. "...Maman. Papa. We need to talk."

* * *

Tensions between Marinette and her parents had been tense, and that was putting it positively mildly. Since the blunette's outburst at her parents during the initial media craze, they had all gone out of each other's way to give each other some distance. She hadn't even been in trouble for screeching at them the way she had, and while in front of other customers no less.

Marinette's parents weren't exactly strict. They were firm when they had to be, but otherwise, were fairly relaxed about what their daughter did, so long as she knew how to do it properly and safely. They understood her needs to have freedom as a young adult, and respect that, and tried to do well by her. In reality, Marinette knew, especially compared to Adrien's, she couldn't ask for better parents.

To both of their credit, when Marinette and Adrien explained themselves to the married couple, they didn't interrupt. They didn't speak. They didn't pry. They allowed the young couple to explain everything at their pace. It didn't make it less awkward to explain, in detail they would have preferred to not go into, but without the certain context, their relationship would have seemed rushed or half baked. They had to include Marinette's near mugging, how Chat Noir had saved her, the impulsive kiss they had shared, the consecutive visits, and eventually, their full blown relationship. They left out the part about Marinette being Ladybug. This entire mess was already complicated enough as it was, without adding to the fact that their daughter was a superhero who almost got herself killed a few days ago to the list.

Seeing a flying, black, tiny cat like creature also wasn't helping matters. In fact, it made the whole situation seem even more ridiculously absurd. The fact it could also talk made matters ten times worse. Especially since Plagg had a far more laid back attitude about the entire situation, trying to convince everyone to just forget about the entire thing and eat some food instead. He honestly had next to no clue about general human interaction.

Once they had finished, they were met with a good half minute of silence, as Marinette's parents processed everything that they had just been told. Adrien had since learned her parents were called Sabine and Tom, and looking at them right now, the young model honestly had no idea what to expect from them. Tom was sat with his arms folded, staring directly at the two, with a look that combined anger with confusion, and Sabine was shakily tipping a cup of tea she had poured. He didn't like the feeling of being a complete outsider he was getting, but Adrien understood it. They had met before, under far better circumstances. These weren't even close to those conditions.

"...So..." Sabine asked, placing her tea-cup in her saucer, and placing that on the table in front of her. It was her and Tom on one side, Adrien and Marinette on the other. The two teenagers were stood up, which was doing horrors for their knees, both of whom felt like they were about to collapse any second from sheer nervousness. "..The... Mask thing..." Understandably, Sabine had little idea on how to phrase her words. This was a superhero in front of her, after all. "...When did you... Learn it was... Him, Marinette?"

"Only when everyone else did..." Marinette confessed. That wasn't even a lie.

"Well, this at least explains why you were so mad at us." Tom said with a sigh. Marinette wasn't sure of what to make of her father. She got the sickening feeling he disapproved.

"That's... Understandable." Sabine agreed, with a more reluctant sigh of her own.

Another bout of silence descended on the two of them. Out of her parents below, Mairnette grabbed hold of Adrien's hand, and intertwined their fingers, and squeezed tightly. Her boyfriend returned the gesture.

"I, um..." Adrien started, and suddenly, all eyes were on him. This was the first time he had spoken freely. Up until this point, he had been adding on to what Marinette had said, hardly speaking a word. "...I'm... I don't mean... For any harm to... Come to Marinette..." Was all he could say. He couldn't really think of anything else to say to them.

"Her being in danger is the problem." Tom said, leaning back in his seat, his eyes firmly fixed on Adrien.

"O-Of course, sir." Adrien nodded. He knew it wasn't right for him to fight back against this. They were right. He knew it too. Marinette was in danger even being associated with him.

"Wait a second, Papa!" Marinette said, trying to defend Adrien. She was cut off immediately by her father before she got another word in, simply by raising his large hand.

"Marinette, he's a model. That in itself holds risk." Tom said, listing the point on his finger. He was right. Dating a model left you open to all sorts of dangers, be it obsessed lunatics, the media shaming you, or anything in between. Things Adrien was already afraid of. "And secondly... He's Chat Noir! I mean - What if someone tries to get to him by using you?" Another thing Adrien knew was true.

It wasn't a surprise her father disapproved. He could see her mother also reluctantly nodding. Adrien had expected this. In a way, Marinette had also. Dating someone like him was like a game of Russian Roulette - You never knew when everything would be over because of a stupid risk.

"You can't blame him for those!" Fought back Marinette. "He doesn't even like his modelling! And he - He didn't get a choice regarding weather he wanted to be Chat Noir or not!"

"That parts true." Plagg commented, munching on a piece of bread he had stolen, or in his words, sampled, from behind the counter. He spoke with a stuffed mouth, making his words harder to comprehend. "Adrien was chosen. If he didn't accept, there simply wouldn't be a Chat Noir."

"Plagg, stop stealing their food!" Adrien yelled, trying to grab his tiny partner with his free hand, only for it to hover higher in the air.

"What? I thought all stores had a free sample!"

"This isn't the time, Plagg!" Adrien muttered, before he turned his attention back to Marinette's parents. Despite the tension, Sabine was able to smile at least at the situation. Sabine was a blunette, just like her daughter, was of Chinese ethnicity, which explained Marinette's very light traces of Chinese ancestry, and she seemed rather calm in nature, and rather kind. It was clear she wasn't particularly on board with this entire meeting in the first place, seeming reluctant, but technically agreeing with her husband. It was from her Marinette must have gotten her kindness.

While she got her stubbornness from her father, who hadn't changed in expression. Adrien didn't have it in him to hold anything against the large French man. His concerns were perfectly understandable. He obviously loved his daughter very much, more than he loved his own well-being. He was already a far better father than Adrien's was, at least in the blond Parisian's mind.

"And... I don't even know what that thing is." Tom said, covering his face with one of his hands. "And to top it all off, you kept him in the house, uninvited and unannounced, and we had to learn this by hearing him and... That thing, talking? We thought someone had broken in, Marinette! How... Just, how do you expect me to honestly support this, when there's so much danger surrounding it?"

The young girl felt her anger she felt for him a few days ago bubbling up again. She had fought to be with Adrien for over a year, and had fought like hell to be with chat Noir over the recent few weeks, and now, he was acting like he could tell her who she could and couldn't love? "Papa, how could you -"

"Mari." Adrien said firmly, stopping her in her tracks. His eyes were shut, and his teeth gritted.

"Adrien?..."

With a sigh, Adrien looked at her. "Mari... These are some valid points he's making. I said them myself, didn't I? The whole country has gone mad with the knowledge that I am who I am, and being with me before you even knew I was Chat was risky in itself. Nothing Mr. Dupain is saying here is incorrect." With a heavy sigh, Adrien continued. "I completely understand his concerns."

"But it's not fair..." Marinette said with a quiet, sad voice, looking down at their hands, closely and tightly held. He hadn't done anything wrong. He couldn't help who he was. Why did they both had to suffer this because of who they were?

"I know, Mari." Her boyfriend replied, equally sad in measure. "But it's not like he's doing it out of malice... But that doesn't mean, even for a second, I Plan on giving you up. Not after what we both just went through to actually get to this point. I refuse."

That was all that was needed to send Marinette into a flurry of tears, and make her throw her arms around the young blond's neck, and hug him tighter than she had ever hugged anyone in her entire life. He struggled to breathe, only for a second, before he managed to wriggle his way into a breathable position, before he returned the hug. They were in a similar position to how they had been this morning. Only this was out of sadness. Not only out of love.

"It's alright, Marinette." Adrien said, gently trying to reassure her, holding her close. Her crying out of any reason other than sheer joy was far too painful to see. "It's alright..."

"Tom..." Sabine could be very lightly heard above Marinette's crying by Adrien. He was too focused on comforting the crying girl in his arms to focus on her words too much, but he listened where he could. "Just... Look at them... Don't they remind you of anyone?"

"No. Who are you thinking of?" Her husband responded, leaning closer to better hear his wife.

"Us?"

From what Adrien could see, he could have sworn that Marinette's father looked like he had been struck by lightning. He seemed to bolt upright, and look at his wife with wide eyes and narrow pupils.

For Tom, it felt like he had been shown a memory he hadn't seen in several decades. Him, bringing a Chinese girl home for the first time. His parents had done the exact same thing with him and her that day. The only difference today, was that Adrien wasn't Chinese, or English, or Japanese, or from anywhere else. He was a superhero, apparently chosen by forces beyond his power.

Like Sabine was Chinese beyond her power.

What was the difference, despite the specific hand that had been played to them?

While Adrien tried to comfort Marinette more and more, Tom looked set the two young teenagers in front of him. It was clear how much they cared for one another just by watching them now. Merely watching them told that particular story. How long had they said they had officially been together? A week or two? And yet, they were still so close to one another.

Hadn't he and Sabine promised themselves that no matter who Marinette came to love, they would show the support that they lacked from their parents?

What had happened to that?

Part of him wanted to overrule himself and say this was a special exception. His daughter being with someone like this, a superhero, someone who the whole world knew about now, was simply too dangerous. He shouldn't accept it. He couldn't.

But that would make him a massive hypocrite. To himself, and everything that he stood for.

"...Marinette, you truly care about this boy, don't you?" He asked, standing up and making his way over to the two of them.

Forcing herself to stop crying, Marinette answered, her voice shaky, but strong all the same. "Papa... He makes me feel safe... Happy... Loved... And I - I love him!" She shouted at him, before throwing herself into another hug, which made Adrien stumble back a few steps due to the sheer force the girl had thrown herself.

For a second, Adrien came dangerously close to falling down on the floor. He was stopped by Tom, whom grabbed him by the shoulder, helping him keep upright, and stared at the blond Parisian. His stare seemed less 'Stern father' now, and more 'Can I trust this boy?'. "You care about Marinette a great deal too, right?"

Wasn't that already obvious, Adrien thought to himself. Regardless, he answered with the same brutal honesty he answered Marinette with. He held nothing back in those few words. "Marinette's the only person on the planet who made me feel like I mattered more than just as a hero or a pretty face for the entire country. I love her. And I'm more than willing to die to keep her safe."

"You... Understand my concerns?"

Looking forwards, Adrien rested his head on top of Marinette's, and spoke softly. "I do... And they depress me... Mostly because, I know they're all very good reasons... And that they're true."

"Then make sure you protect her."

The young couple looked at the large French man, who was stood there with a smile on his face, for the first time since they had seen him this day. Both of them had to look at the other again, before they looked back at Tom.

"What..." Marinette asked, drying her eyes with her sleeve, "What are you saying?"

"Marinette... A long time ago, your mother and I got ourselves into a similar situation... And here we are. We got to be happy." He smiled at his wife, wondering how he had ever forgotten the struggles they had gone through just to be together. He looked back at his daughter and her boyfriend, Adrien, Chat Noir, whatever he wanted to be called, and said to them, "Maybe I was far too protective of you about this... After all, what kind of a Papa would I be if I got to be happy, but I denied my daughter the chance to be with someone she loved?"

The beautiful tears of joy found their way onto Marinette's face once more, and she tackled her father with a hug so fierce, it nearly threatened to knock him over, despite being over twice her size. "Papa!" Like that, the tension they felt between each other was gone, erased from their memories.

From her seat on the couch, Sabine smiled at the scene, and at Adrien.

His surprise and shock was unmissable. He stood there, tears in his own eyes. Forcing himself to be as polite as he could, he spoke, "Mr. Dupain... Mrs. Cheng..." He bowed, not sure how else to show his pure appreciation. "Thank you, so much..."

"There's really no need to be so formal with us." Sabine told him with a more peppy tone to her voice than before as she spoke to the young superhero. "You can call me by my name. Sabine."

"You can call me Tom." Her father said, still being held tightly by his daughter.

Adrien couldn't help but smile and shed a few tears of happiness. This was a real family. People who cared for one another. Who loved one another. Who learned from one another, who could realize their mistakes, and come out better people for it.

Exactly what Adrien had never had, but always wanted.

 _A family._

* * *

 **This one took a bit longer to write than usual, because I wanted to get a feel for how something this immensely awkward was going to go.**

 **Given the outbreak of the media explosion surrounding Adrien, I find it unlikely her parents would have been on board with them if something similar hadn't happened to them in their past, which is why I included the part about their difficulties of a relationship due to** **Sabine's Chinese ethnicity. Absolutely no idea if that's the official lore, but that's what I'm going for.**

 **Its also me taking a stab at French attitudes, because France really has a terrible issue with that. Serious, genuine condolences for the attacks and all, but that doesn't excuse racism and xenophobia, guys '-' Anyway! Enough of me taking shots at the French!**

 **this was one of the main chapters I wrote that focuses on others discovering Adrien after the reveal of his identity. Over the next few chapters, that's going to be quite a large focus, as I explore the various different people who Adrien is forced to confront, and how I image they'd react. There's one or two i'm looking forward to doing immensely, so be excited for that ^_^**

 **As per usual, you can find more on my Wattpad, for slightly earlier updates, and my YouTube, where I talk absolute nonsense for anything between 20 minutes to an hour and mock people without mercy. Links are in my profile description.**

 **And I shall see you, in whatever it is, that I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	11. Friends We Trust

"Your family is nice. I like them."

Hours having passed, and dusk having fallen upon them, Adrien and Marinette found themselves watching as the sun set, and the moon orbiting the planet they stood on. They looked out from Marinette's balcony at the city of Paris as the sun set, out of view of the rest of the people, so no one would notice them. Beautiful mixtures of orange, red and yellow bled into the sky above them, making the city look like something out of a picture, as the light shone around them, but the buildings looked black at the same time, like a natural contrast. A warm, cool, gentle breeze surrounding the slightly humid air blew against their faces, and a sense of peace hit them.

There really hadn't been much they could do on this day without revealing Adrien to the public. Doing so was a massive risk that they both decided wasn't worth it. Instead, they had spent the day in Marinette's home, where Adrien had gotten the chance to get to know Tom and Sabine better. They had engaged in friendly conversation. With Tom, he had discussed how they could keep Marinette safe, out of a mutual desire to keep her from harm's way, as well as other more general things, such as what Tom did for a living, how he had met his wife, and other such subjects. Discussions with Sabine had been far more casual, which basically translated to Sabine spending most of her time trying to embarrass her daughter.

"You do?" The blunette girl was stood next to him, leaning against the railing, her head rested on her arms.

"Yeah, definitely. They're fun."

"Really?"

"Compared to my father?" Adrien reminded a somewhat disbelieving Marinette. "Your parents can actually understand and empathise with you. Learn when they're wrong. Hell, even engage in a conversation with you. I don't even remember the last time me and my father had a conversation. I've barely even seen him over the last few weeks. He didn't even attempt to get in contact with the hospital that I was being treated at." Due to his upbringing, he had just been hardened to it. He despised it, but he just knew how to endure it. He knew how other families were, and had longed for that. Today marked the first time he had even managed to come close to that.

"I guess you've got a lot to talk about next time you see him..." Marinette said with a sigh, having a general understanding of how Gabriel Agreste treated his son. It had been somewhat hard to swallow, seeing as he had been one of her favourite designers in all of Paris. That image if him being cold and aloof, even towards his own flesh and blood...

Nodding, the blond model actually smirked. "Yeah, well, maybe I'll get to have a conversation with him on my terms for once. Not me just nodding and politely accepting whatever it is he says. Maybe now I'll have a chance to fight for what it is that I want."

Smiling, Marinette sighed lightly in relaxation. From what she had heard about his father, she felt proud of Adrien for being ready to take a stand against Gabriel once the time was right. "So, what is it that you want?"

"Have a say in my own life... Do things that I actually want to... but above anything else? To be with you, of course, Bugaboo."

Hearing the answer she both wanted and hoped for, she moved in closer to Adrien, closing the gap between the two of them. She rested her head on his chest, positioned so she could still see the sunset, and placed her hand atop his on the railing. "Glad to hear it, Kitty."

In a quick response, Adrien wrapped his arm around Marinette's waist, and held her close to him. Just doing so, being so close to this girl he loved, gave him the drive to face his father when he had to. For her. Until then, they still had some more urgently pressing matters. "Well... School starts for the week tomorrow." He said to her, attempting to spark some sort of topic.

The two of them had gone over the work Adrien had missed again today, similar to how things had been before the mugging that set off this entire endeavour. Only this time, it had been filled with a little less awkwardness and a little more love and kisses. During the writing however, Marinette had seen Adrien's hand seem to shake.

He had been adamant about actually going to classes. He said he wanted to. Felt like he had to. But he was still clearly nervous.

"You nervous?" She asked him, looking up from his chest. She could feel his heart rate increase from the mere mention of the subject.

"Absolutely." He admitted. He was very anxious about the next day. Saying he was anything other would be an outright lie. How couldn't he be nervous? People he had known for a year, people he considered his friends, knew about his identity, that he had basically lied to their faces for the past year, and they saw it when he was being brutally beaten down by an Akuma. Saying he wasn't nervous was just a total lie.

"You don't have to go in tomorrow you know." Marinette said to him again, the concern in her voice obvious. "I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind if you stayed here for the day..."

"I need to face everyone someday." Adrien said with a sigh. He couldn't just hide from them forever. Eventually, he would have to come to face the people in his life. "It might as well be sooner rather than later." He was completely serious about going the next day. He had to do it. It needed to be done. He had to get it all out of the way, not only for his own sake. But for hers too.

"I see..." Marinette understood his reasoning, and was glad that he was still dedicated to living his life, regardless of all eyes being on him.

"You know... Plagg and I had a thought." Adrien told her. He explained to her the conversation he and the Kwami had had, about doing an interview or two, to help the media craze die down a bit. It had been the topic of a long and lengthy discussion between the two of them. Marinette's concerns were understandable, if not totally obvious. There wasn't a requirement for him to do that. He shouldn't have to. He didn't need to. He wasn't some sort of show for the whole world to compete over. He was Adrien Agreste. Chat Noir. The world should be thanking him for what he did with Ladybug, not now treating him like he was some sort of commodity. Some sort of prize to be won for ratings.

"I know you're concerned, Mari." Adrien said, trying to reassure her. He was secretly appreciative of her concern, deeply appreciative of it, but still. "But... Think about it pragmatically. Now, I am a prize. I am someone people are looking at. I am an object of media centralisation." Before Marinette could protest again, Adrien held up a finger, to signal he wasn't finished. "But! That's also a good thing. If I show that I'm not an enigma, then eventually, media interest will die down. Hell, Alya could probably help with that... I just need to show I'm a regular person, like anyone else is."

Nodding, the blunette girl watched the sun set with him for a few more moments. She still hated the idea… But she understood the logic. She hated the fact that Adrien had just subjected himself to that sort of life, like he expected it, but she knew he understood that world better than she could. They remained in a silence, neither sure what to say or think. This was one of the few moments they could have to themselves without worrying about people following them, the media, or anything else, for a while now. Perhaps for years and years. Was it really a time to worry about the inevitabilities of a few days?

Then again, those next few days could determine the rest of their lives. It would be dumb not to talk about them.

"What..." Marinette started, breaking the silence. As she spoke, she could feel Adrien's neck tilting so he could look at her. "What... Do we tell everyone at school... About us?"

The front of his brain had been occupied with this question for a long while. What did they tell people? That was a question that they really did have to consider carefully. The after effects could be completely disastrous if they didn't handle it correctly. The media would be absolutely ferocious if they messed this up. There really wasn't any doubt. They'd drag both their names through the mud, rocks and dirt, just so their websites would get a few more clicks. They'd intentionally leave parts of the story out. They'd emphasise anything they said.

That was just how the media worked. That was just how social media worked. Leaving parts out to spark controversy. That's how the sold articles. Sold papers.

"I honestly don't know." Adrien sighed in defeat, unsure of what he thought was the best course of action. "What do your parents think?"

"I spoke to Maman and Papa about it..." Marinette said. "They... They'd prefer it if we kept it a secret. They think that it's dangerous for me to even be associated with you publicly... But, they said they'd do anything they could to help us if we decided to be open about it. They said that we need to be ready to face the consequences to whichever we choose... They're leaving it to us."

More than Adrien had expected. He was certain that they would have been fierce in opposing their public relationship. In a way, so was Adrien. They were right, it was dangerous...

"What about you?" He asked. "What do you want to do?"

"What I want?..." Considering for a second, she separated from Adrien and looked at him, a fire in her eyes. "What I don't want, is for me to have to watch a hundred girls try and grab you each and every day... I don't want to have to suppress my feelings, just because the public feel some sort of need to pry... I don't want to have to hide my feelings for you... What I want... Is to be able to hold your hand in public. Like anyone else can."

Such a serious tons, and so sincere, and so ferric in what she was saying... Adrien couldn't help but smile. "Are you certain? You don't know the newspapers like I do. They're going to be savage."

"It's going to take more than the words of people hiding behind cameras and screens to make me stop saying ' _I love you, Adrien Agreste_ ' where everyone can hear it."

His heart fluttered, and he sighed with happiness. At the same time, he felt his organ beating like a jackhammer. He couldn't help but keep his grin on his face as he wondered who exactly he had served in a previous life to be blessed with such a loyal and beautiful angel. "Well, I guess we're going public then."

Tomorrow was certain to be an eventful day.

* * *

It was 06:00 in the morning, and Adrien and Marinette found themselves already at the steps to their school. Around them, they were surrounded by a dark mist like presence that covered them. The night-fog helped it seemed far later than it actually was. There were very few cars out at this time, and even fewer people on the streets. Anyone who walked on the streets heard their own footsteps echo. Thankfully, that also included little to no media or reporters or anyone asking around the school.

They were here this early for a couple of reasons. The main reason being, if there ended up being a large number of reporters coming here, being here earlier than they were would result in being able to avoid them charging the young model on the streets altogether. That was the most base reason of them all, self-preservation, to protect themselves against a stampede of over eager reporters and critics.

The second reason was far more personal, and far more important, as far as Adrien was concerned.

They were meeting with Nino and Alya.

After a brief discussion Marinette and Adrien had agreed that it would be better if they explained everything to them first. Not so much because they deserved to know, but more because it was paramount that they at least heard Adrien's half of the story before anyone else did, and before it was twisted into something heinous by the public. He planned on explaining it to anyone who asked him about it. But he wanted to tell them first.

Once the young couple had agreed on telling them, Marinete had sent both Nino and Alya the same message, telling them to be at the school at around 06:00. She told them Adrien would be there, and that he wanted to talk to them. Both of them had responded within minutes, saying that they'd be there. That left them approximately an hour or two before classes started, giving them some time before other students came. He could filter through the people in his class easily that way, instead of dealing with an avalanche of people all asking at once. Dealing with one or two at a time would be far easier than dealing with about twelve people asking all at once, all shouting and yelling questions at the same time without giving him the chance to answer.

It also gave them a chance to talk about their relationship. Marinette knew that Alya was going to have fun with this one...

"Yikes..." Adrien said to himself. He had sat himself on one of the benches in the courtyard of the school, and had brought him hands together, and attempted to calm himself down, almost by a sort of meditation, as he tried to regulate his breathing. He was far more nervous than he had been, probably in his life. He could show off a huge range of outfits and designer jumpers in front of three thousand VIPS, no problem! And right now, he was quite frankly terrified of two of his best friends on how they would judge him because of his double life.

"Nervous?" Marinette asked him, stood next to him. It was a pointless question, but she thought that maybe if he could just speak to her a little, it would ease his mind a bit.

"Oh yeah." Adrien replied with a nervous chuckle, and another deep breath.

"If it's any consolation, I'm fairly confident that Alya won't mind." Marinette said, trying to lighten the mood. "She only responded to my message with 'OMG' about seven times, so that's a good sign."

That did earn a small laugh from Adrien. "I kinda figured that she wouldn't be too upset. I think I'm gonna be giving her a few interviews before this whole mess is sorted out. Maybe she could help out?.. I mean, her blog is fairly popular..." He knew he had asked this already yesterday, but he wasn't really thinking straight at this point.

"We could ask I suppose." Marinette nodded, certain her friend would be more than happy to help. Still, she couldn't be certain her friend wouldn't be upset. If the past week had taught her anything, it was that anything is possible.

So that just left Nino. Marinette didn't really know him well enough to say how he would react. He did know that he and Adrien were close friends, probably best friends. He knew Nino enough to know that he was a loyal sort of person. He and Adrien had pretty much shared all their problems with one another in absolute confidence.

But Adrien had basically lied to Nino's face, time and time again due to his alter ego. There really wasn't a way to predict how that would go.

The next few moments passed away in silence, as both of them tried to psyche themselves up for what was to come. Today was destined to be an eventful day, full of all sorts of various emotions, revelations, and drama. It was going to be hectic and stressful. The two of them really only had one another to rely on.

But for Adrien, that was enough.

During another deep, relaxing breath, the calm atmosphere was shattered, by the sounds or two separate footsteps, approaching. The quiet city practically magnified even the smallest sound when the rest of the city was silent, so you could hear a penny drop from a hundred meters away. Footsteps, two separate ones, headed towards the school. When one listened carefully, they could hear voices too.

"...You know it's not like he had a choice, right?..."

"...I know, I know... It's just... Y'know?..."

Nino and Alya. They were here.

Adrien forced himself to take a deep breath. Inhale, hold it for five seconds, and exhale again, slowly, blowing it out the small hole he made with his lips. This was it. He was reassured once more by Marinette.

"Everything will be okay."

He looked up at her and smiled, and just as quickly, he turned his head back to the entrance to the courtyard. It took a few seconds before they appeared, but they spotted one another instantly. They had sat on a bench directly opposing the entrance way. They would have seen anyone who came in the second they showed up. There they were. Alya and Nino.

In a weak attempt at normality, Adrien tried to offer a small wave. Alya returned it with boundless energy, whereas Nino gave just a small nod.

It was the first time since his identity had been made public knowledge that anyone aside from a doctor, Marinette's parents, or Marinette herself, had seen Adrien. That made it a weird experience, for both Alya and Nino, as well as Adrien. For the two Parisian school students, it was almost surreal to see their close friend again, after not seeing him in so long, but also with the knowledge he was one of the superheroes they admired the most. It felt like learning that the mascots at parades were just people wearing masks, only infinitely more personal.

For the blond hero, it was almost sad. He had wanted to tell them before. He had wanted to let them know who he was. He didn't want everything to go like this. He hadn't had a choice in how it went down. And this was the consequence. He could only hope they would understand.

Alya was stood with a phone, and what looked like some sort of clipboard in her hand. There wasn't even a shred of doubt that that clipboard had about a million questions on it for the young Parisian hero. She also seemed to look excited upon seeing Adrien and Marinette. She nudged Nino with her arm and went over to the two of them, with what looked like a smile on her face.

Nino on the other hand looked almost depressed, and rather sullen. His hands were located in his pockets, his usual bright disposition gone. He didn't seem particularly angry or disappointed. More worried and in thought than he was upset. He walked over at a pace slower than Alya's.

Alya didn't waste any time with some sort of awkward formalities, seeming to know just how nervous the two of them must have been. Without warming, she engaged in a friendly hug with Adrien, to pretty much everyone's surprise. "It's good to see you again. We've been worried."

Adrien was taken aback, and almost shot a glance at Marinette to seek her approval, but decided against it. Alya was a close friend. He returned the friendly hug with a smile, and a pat on the back. At least this had gotten off to a good start. "Good to see you as well."

Next up, after separating from the amateur reporter, Adrien turned to face Nino, and held up a fist for him. It was how they basically greeted one another, by bumping fists. Nino returned it, but he seemed to lack the same energy that he would usually return it with. "Adrien." His voice was sullen. Almost dark.

"Nino..." Adrien replied, nodding his head, sadly. He could tell. Nino was upset. He felt betrayed. Angry. He knew it was a possibility... But it hadn't been one he had seriously wanted to consider.

The two also gave their greetings to Marinette after they had Adrien. It had been a while since their friend group had gotten together like this, so everyone still had to readjust to each other's presence all at once. Now that the group was all here, Adrien knew he had to start explaining. Fast. "Well... I guess I need to explain myself."

Before he could, he was met with stares from both Alya and Nino. Stares that suggested they were waiting for something. Or... More accurately, someone.

With a reluctant sigh, Adrien pulled open his jacket and said, "You might as well come out, Plagg. You're not a secret anymore, remember?"

And with that, the cat Kwami hovered out of the pocket in his human partners clothing, holding a slice of Camembert that he somehow hadn't eaten yet, and perched himself on top of Adrien's shoulder. "I did always hate that pocket. Way too stuffy."

"That's because you store it full of food all the time, Plagg."

"What's the point of travelling without in-flight food and entertainment?"

The two ended their brief back-and-forth, and refocused their attention to the two Parisians, who still seemed shocked that this tiny, levitating cat like magical creature could not only talk, but had been hidden on their friends person the entire time they had known him. Alya was the first one to speak up, her phone already on the creature, snapping picture after picture. "What, the heck, is that?"

Understandably reluctant, Adrien sighed. "This is Plagg. He's a Kwami."

"Hey." Was all Plagg said, before he chomped down on his slice of Camembert. He did absolutely nothing to help with the current situation, far more focused on his third snack after breakfast than he was on aiding Adrien explain all of this to his group of friends.

"Thanks, Plagg." Adrien muttered, still hearing the shutter on Alya's phone going off and off again and again. He didn't bother stopping her. Plagg was already all over the internet and television since the fight with Overgrow. "He uh... Basically helps me with my... You know... Hero deal."

A ring of silence descended on the group. Just hearing that sentence, 'Hero deal', reminded everyone why they were really here. What had happened. Nino seemed the most shaken by that sentence. A reminder that the trust between the two friends wasn't as deep as he had thought.

"...Are you guys... Angry with me?" The question Adrien had dreaded the answer to. He had to know, what did they think of him? Were they still friends, or would they distance themselves away from him? How far was loyalty able to be stretched before it snapped thanks to pressure and betrayal of trust?

"Are you kidding?!" Alya yelled at him in excitement. "This is incredible! I mean... You're... It's... You! You're freaking Chat Noir! Right here, in front of me! I mean, I - I had a hunch a while ago, but I - I - It's so unreal! It's hard to comprehend!... I have, like, so many questions!"

"I bet you do." Adrien said with a smile. He could count on Alya to see the best of this situation. She was friends with Chat Noir, outside the mask. Certainly before the mask even came off. She had come closer than anyone to discovering who Chat and Ladybug were. "You're a good reporter, Alya." Adrien nodded. "You came really close quite a few times. If anyone was gonna figure out who I was, I was certain it was gonna be you."

"I mean, like, I totally get why you hid it!" Alya said, trying to calm herself down. "There's been a lot of talk about you..."

"Yeah, dude." Nino said, speaking up for the first time. "All sorts of rumours have been going around. Some people think it's a publicity stunt or something. Others think it's all fake..."

"Are you upset with me, Nino?"

His Moroccan descended friend sighed and looked at him. It was only now that Adrien managed to place the expression his friend was wearing. Not anger. Not betrayal. But rather, it was worry. "I gotta be honest, dude, I was mad to start. I was really, like, completely blazing mad. I just thought, how could he just say all that stuff he said and say it all to my face? Every time I saw you as Chat came back to me, and I just... I'm more worried now than anything, Adrien. Alya here helped me calm down." He pointed towards the reporter girl with his thumb. "She told me to look at it from your perspective... How you must have known this might happen... And when I think about it like that... I'm not sure I would have done any different. But now everyone knows who you are..."

"I don't exactly expect you to go down with me, Nino." Adrien said, with a weak, friendly smile. He couldn't blame Nino for thinking like that. Loyalty had to have its limits somewhere.

"No, dude, don't get the wrong idea!" Nino protested. "It's gonna take a lot more than a few reporters to make me abandon my buddy." For the first time, he smiled. "I'm just... Really concerned about everything else. Like, everyone else in class. The reporters, no offence, Alya, and people trying to attack you..."

The young superhero would have hugged his best friend if he was within arm's reach. He had been worried sick about what he would have thought about him, the one friend he had made at this school who had continuously stood by him without question, defended him, spoke up for him, helped him adjust to social situations, and guided him throughout his adjustment period. When he had saw him, he thought he had regarded him in contempt. In total disgust that he had been lied to, after everything he had done for the model Parisian. Adrien wouldn't have been able to blame him if he did have contempt for him.

But he hadn't. He had been angry, but now, he wasn't. Now, he was thinking about the safety of his friend. That level of worry had been shown on his face. Serious consideration, and serious concern.

Could Adrien have really asked for a better friend?

"...I appreciate it, Nino." He said, rubbing his eyes from the tears of joy he was subconsciously welling up with. He had been so worried about what they had thought... And they had been so understanding... They were just the best friends he could ever ask for, ever. "Thank you... Thank you so much..."

Alya and Nino shot a worried glance at one another. Had they done something to upset him?

Marinette stood forward with a humoured smile on her face. "It's uh, just been a long week for him. He's been... Kind of emotional."

"What do you mean, 'All week'?" Alya asked, with a raised eyebrow. Adrien had been unmasked about six days ago. Him being emotional would be understandable... But how would Marinette know he was being so?...How could she be so certain he wasn't just crying out of sadness? In fact, come to think of it... "Wait, Marinette? Why are you even here? You're the one who sent the message arranging this meeting, so... Has Adrien been hiding out with you?"

"I told you it wouldn't take her long to figure it out." Adrien smirked at the blunette. He already knew where this was going, but for the personal reason of enjoying seeing Marinette embarrassed because it was adorable, he didn't try to prevent her floundering, at least not immediately.

With a dark red blush, Marinette had to figure out how she was going to break this part of the story to her best friend. After all she had done to push her towards talking to Adrien, she at least deserved to know. Thrown on the spot however, Marinette felt like she had just lost all her cognitive thinking abilities. "U-Um, well... You see, um, the thing is..."

A wide grin still planted on his face, Adrien decided that seeing it would be a whole lot easier. And a lot more fun. The sheer relief that he had felt thanks to his friends at least understanding his issues, and still accepting him, had left him in a very good, and jokey mood, so while he probably wouldn't have done this in any other circumstance, he was in far too good a mood to think about it.

He grabbed a hold of her hand, and intertwined their fingers together, holding their hands up so Nino and Alya could see. That would have been enough, but Adrien was feeling a lot more playful than that, so he pulled her hand towards him, and planted a soft kiss on the back of her hand, like a knight would for his lady. And she was his lady.

"That should give you an idea." He said with a Chat-like, satisfied smirk, he looked at a completely flustered Marinette, and made a cat like claw motion, and recited, "My lady," to her, like he had a thousand times for her, as Marinette, and as Ladybug.

The next few moments were filled with a flurry of high pitched screaming from Alya, asking questions at about a mile a minute and constant congratulations for her best friend, and snapping pictures of the two of them holding hands so much that everyone was convinced the shutter on her phone was about to snap. Marinette's embarrassed squeals and protests dotted the calls, her face a dark scarlet, but managing to smile all the same. She sat down by Adrien now, hardly even leaving a hap between them, which earned another squeal from Alya. Nino, meanwhile, held up a fist for Adrien, which he returned, this time, with full energy that one would have expected from the darker-skinned Parisian.

Meanwhile, Plagg simply groaned and hovered around the courtyard, taking no part in any of this. Secretly, he was happy for his human partner, but be damned if he was going to show it.

 _'Well, at least these two seem to be fine with everything.'_ Adrien couldn't help but think, resting his head on Mairnette's shoulder, in a small act of their usual role, only reversed. Out of sheer emotional exhaustion, mostly. He kept one eye open and saw Alya looking through every picture she had taken, with Nino leaning over her shoulder with a massive grin, pointing out which ones she intended to print out for her wall which was apparently filled with photographic memories of her friends and days out with people she cared for. _'Maybe they're a little too okay with it.'_ Adrien chuckled to himself, closing his other eye, allowing himself to be enveloped in Marinette's warmth. He could feel her eyes on him, but eventually, after only a few seconds, she relaxed and threw her arm around him.

"Are you okay now, Kitty?" Marinette asked, resting her hand on his head, her fingers running through his blond hair. Just hearing her voice made Adrien feel like he was wrapped up in a warm blanket.

"Better than I was, m'lady." He replied to her, with an affectionate purr. He snuggled up closer to her, not particularly caring that they were technically in public.

 _'That's a lot off my mind._ ' The young hero thought. He knew it wasn't over. Not even by a long shot. But he was totally fine now, knowing that his immediate circumstance, he closest friendships, wouldn't change.

 _'I guess we just have to wait to see everyone else.'_

* * *

 **Aren't I just the cruelest? You'll see more of the reactions to Adrien as Chat Noir next tiiiiiiiiime!**

 **The one bad thing about bring a writer - I get very few chances to read other people's writing, except at night, which I usually fall asleep pretty early on at. I'm usually up until )3:00 AM writing and watching videos, drawing and other such things. I do a lotta stuff to keep myself bust from the sheer force of boredom. ^_^**

 **I'd like to say something right now guys - Don't hesitate to point out mistakes. I got a message a few days ago asking me if its annoying to point out stuff like grammar mistakes - Its not, at least not to me. If anything, it makes me feel embarrassed that I messed up that way and someone had to read the story with those mistakes in it, so you really are doing me a favour.**

 **I'd also like to say, thanks so much for the support on this story guys, you're really amazing. Love the votes, love the followers, and love the comments. Y'all are some crazy individuals, and I love it.**

 **You can find more on my , and my YouTube, links to both on my profile,**

 **And I will see you, in whatever it is, that I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	12. An Unexpected Sympathy

The addition of the small Kwami had been of large notice for the humans surrounding it. Marinette was used to seeing Plagg, and as such, didn't really mind so much, but it was weird for her to see a Kwami casually talking to humans, like that had been the norm for centuries. For Alya and Nino however, it was like discovering a brand new fossil. Seeing as how Plagg was roughly over 5000 years old, the analogy wasn't completely inaccurate. The basic functions of what Plagg did to help Adrien transform into Chat Noir were explained immensely briefly, the ancient mystical creature and the blond model telling only what needed to be told. Plagg helped Adrien transform because of magic, and while that sounded like a massively sarcastic joke of an answer, that was genuinely the reason the two beings were able to merge.

They skimmed as many details as they could. They couldn't let too much information get out. They didn't mention that Adrien's ring was his miraculous, nor did they mention how miraculous items and Kwami interacted. Only that Adrien technically had one, which they couldn't hide, due to Alya knowing about them thanks to her interactions with Ladybug, and that Plagg was needed, along with the same additional lie that Plagg had to will it the transformation in order for it to work. If they wanted to spread this rumour to minimise the chance of someone trying to steal his miraculous and kidnap Plagg, they needed to spread it to everyone. No exceptions. One lie out, and another lie in.

Alya was scribbling down notes as fast as her fingers were able to move at. She had hit a proverbial gold mine of information regarding how the young superhero duo worked. Adrien answered any questions that she asked, regardless of how silly they may seem, how impractical they might sound, or how personal she got. "Is - Is all this the same for Ladybug?" She asked, looking above her paper as she asked before she immediately returned to note taking.

"I don't actually know." Adrien lied. He became a bit upset when he realized just how easily he managed to lie to Alya. "I don't even know who she is."

"Seriously?"

"No idea who she is. She wanted to keep our identities a secret. Even from one another. She says it's safer that way. Seeing how everyone reacted, she was definitely right." More lies, but it wasn't like he had much of a choice. He'd be damned before he let Marinette go through this sort of hell.

Past Alya, he could see Marinette speaking with Nino, and she shot him a sympathetic glance. She knew it was going to get far worse than Alya. Adrien didn't even mind explaining all of this to Alya. She at least retained some restrain, and was over-excited due to her vested interest in the Parisian superhero duo. She wasn't some lazy flunky reporter who was looking for a lucky break with the biggest report of the century, she actually gave a damn about what Adrien had to say. She noted it down, word for word, and didn't miss out a single scrap of information.

It was people who were going to miss out information deliberately to get more attention that annoyed him. Using him for their own ends. He put up with it with his father because he felt like he had no other choice. Marinette had convinced him otherwise. Just another reason why he loved her so much.

"Actually, Alya, I was sorta hoping you could help me out." Adrien said, remembering what he had wanted to ask her.

"Sure thing! What do you need?" Alya asked, stopping her note taking for a moment to give Adrien her full undivided attention. A reporter wouldn't have done that. A friend would have. Just that simple gesture told Adrien everything he needed to know about alya. She prioritized her friendship with him more than she did her Ladyblog.

"Well... I have a plan to get the media to calm down on me by doing a few interviews. Give them what they want, and eventually they'll just buzz off. I'm only gonna be doing a couple, but uh..." Scratching the back of his head, Adrien continued. "Well... How many people follow your Ladyblog?"

"About ten thousand I think."

"Ten - !" How she was able to even say that so straight faced amazed Adrien. That was a seriously ridiculously large amount of followers, for anyone. It spoke a massive amount to her talent and her technological understanding. He shook it off quickly and returned to the matter of hand. "Perfect. You have a lot of people who follow your blog..."

"It got a big surge after your identity was revealed. Why do you ask?"

Another look was shared between Marinette and Adrien. The blunette trusted her best friend with practically everything there was to trust her with. There was very little that Mairnette wouldn't trust Alya with. She believed Alya could help get the message across that Adrien wanted getting across. She nodded at him, and told Nino that she needed to speak to her boyfriend. Nino nodded and, curious, followed Marinette to the scene. Adrien felt a surge of confidence flow through him once more. "I want you to interview me." He told Alya.

"Wait. You _want me_ to interview _you_?" The young reporter seemed to be sent into a daze after that sentence. the talk of the entire media, Chat Noir, was asking to be interviewed. Asking. Literally. Wasn't this practically every single reporter's dream?

"I don't want special treatment from anyone just because I'm Chat Noir." Adrien explained to her. "But I promise you the newspapers are going to find a way to twist anything I say and make it seem like I'm a jerk. So, I want someone I trust to interview me, and show that to her huge amount of followers. You seem to fit that bill nicely. So... Are you up for that?"

"I - Of course I'll do that!" Alya said, fumbling to quickly grab her phone. They still had roughly half an hour before any of the other students would normally show up. Enough time to get an interview done and out of the way.

Nervously, the blue haired girl walked up to the young hero and asked him softly, "Are you sure about this, Adrien? You know you don't have to do this."

"I'm sure, Mari." Adrien said, placing his hands in her shoulders gently. "You trust Alya, right? I trust her as well. And this way, I'll get to send the message I want across to people, instead of them taking what they want from what I say." He softly whispered to her. "I won't tell them who you are, m'lady."

"You better not, Kitty." Marinette said hugging him briefly, the sass that was normally in her voice when dealing with Chat Noir seeping through. She separated from him once Alya had her phone ready.

Mostly out of habit, Adrien messed with his hair for a moment, like he was preparing for one of his regular photo shoots. Alya was fiddling with her settings on her phone, trying to capture the best camera angle and lighting, and getting a good frame for the interview.

"This is gonna be a long day." Adrien said quietly to himself with a small sigh, and a light smile. At least for now, he could enjoy the company of his friends.

The interview was already done, and already online, before fifteen minutes had even passed.

* * *

As time passed by, the sun rising over the buildings of Paris, and people, commuters, moving on with their daily lives, more and more students started showing up at the school for many of them, they had been expecting a normal, average day.

None of them had really expected to see Adrien again.

Why would they have? It's not exactly expected of a superhero to attend high school. It was far more expected of a hero to be patrolling the streets of Paris at all times, looking for danger and anything that needed to be resolved. Not taking notes on ancient Rome and the British Empire, figuring out what effects occurred when you combined Magnesium with Hydroxide, and solving the area of an equilateral triangle.

And yet, there he was. He was sat there, totally fine, completely the same as he was before the mask was removed. Even Plagg was there, perched on his shoulder. There wasn't really a point in hiding him anymore.

Reactions varied from person to person.

People like Rose, and Mylène, whom were usually the kinder people in their class were the first to show up. Their reactions were similar to those of Alya and Nino, with concern for the person in front of them, and not so much the person who wore the mask.

The next wave of people who showed up, Nathaniel, Kim, Juleka, Max, Alix and Ivan were a bit more vocal, and somewhat slightly intimidated by Adrien initially. After a short while, Adrien had been able to reassure them that there was no need to treat him any differently, and they somewhat relaxed around him. There were a lot of questions thrown at him, all various and numerous. A large number of situations in which he had been Chat Noir in front of them had to be explained. And finally, he had to apologise, countless times, to each and every person there. He apologised for deceiving them for as long as he had done.

"I hid myself from you all, and it's not something I'm proud of, but I felt like I didn't have a choice at all in the matter. I wanted to come clean but, uh, heh, if you've seen the reporters around the place looking for me..." Was his explanation, and weak attempt at justifying himself.

"It... Does make sense."

It was certainly a surprise to everyone around when Nathaniel was the first person to speak up. Normally shy, quiet, and drawing at the back of the classroom, he rarely seemed to speak. A few people turned their heads towards the red haired boy, like they were expecting further elaboration.

Obviously not used to the amount of attention that he was receiving, out came a stutter, and a string of sentences weakly strung together. "I - I mean, think about it. If I had any idea the reporters would have been like that, I wouldn't have said anything either... Besides..." Nathaniel looked directly at Adrien. The two of them never really spoke often. They weren't on good terms, but they weren't on bad terms either. Adrien had been aware of his feelings towards Marinette thanks to Chloe shouting them out to the entire class, but those had seemed to fade with time from what he could see of the artistic boy. "Besides... Ladybug and Chat Noir have helped me... Stopped me from doing things I would regret... So, why should I be upset that he chose to keep his mask on?"

Remarkably, all spurred on to give their opinion by Nathaniel's statement, there wasn't a single person there who seemed to hold it against him. It occurred to Adrien that there hadn't been a single person in the room who hadn't been Akumatized at least once in their lives, excluding himself and Marinette. Perhaps that was what made them sympathetic to him. Many had felt embarrassed when they had to return after Akuma's had been defeated, and it had helped them become empathetic towards him.

"You're certainly popular." Plagg commented with friendly sarcasm.

"Shut it." Adrien muttered with an amused smile to his Kwami partner.

Marinette had watched everything happen in front of her, and she couldn't help herself from smiling. All their classmates, their friends, had shown the very support Adrien had needed right now. The empathy and the understanding that he himself had been so sure didn't exist in people. She was overjoyed that they had given him the support her needed.

"I still can't get my head around all this, girl." Alya said, her usual smile on her face while she flipped through various pages with her phone. "You went from being unable to speak to him last week, to hooking up with him, and now you've found out you'd also hooked up with Chat Noir.

'Not quite how it happened...' Marinette thought, but also felt it was pointless to fully explain how they had wound up together. "Uh, yeah, it's... Really..." She herself couldn't even figure out the word to use. Fulfilling? Amazing? A dream? She couldn't find the words, nor was she sure they even existed. She couldn't even begin to explain the pure joy that she felt. She doubted that honestly, she ever would be able to. "Its just... You know?"

Alya just nodded in her understanding. "I'm so happy for you girl."

An embarrassed smile came onto Mairnette's face. "Still... I'm really not looking forward to seeing a particular classmate of ours."

"Chloe?" That earned Alya a nod. "I didn't think of that actually. Ha, yeah, that's gonna be interesting to see."

"You know how she's been bragging all last week about how her _'boyfriend'_ is Chat Noir." Marinette reminded her friend, the mere memory of it annoying the blunette. Chloe had always irritated her, from the moment she had met her. Part of her was looking forward to seeing her crushed.

"Well, looks like she's about to get dumped then." Alya summarised with a smirk. She proceeded to stretch her arms, cramped from holding onto her phone for such a long time. As she stretched, she was able to see out the window. And see that particular classmate. "Speaking of Chloe, looks like the queen bee herself has shown up."

Around the same time, Adrien was able to see the blonde, spoiled teenager through a gap in his classmates. His face dropped and he let out a sigh, roughly synchronised with Mairnette's. "This is gonna be fun..." He muttered, sarcastically. He didn't dislike Chloe as such. He hated her attitudes towards other people, that part wasn't up for debate. But she was still a friend to him when no one else had been. He was thankful to her for that, if nothing else. But now, he was perfectly and clearly aware of her distaste for Marinette. That wasn't something he was going to tolerate.

"Adrikins!" He could hear her far before he could clearly establish a line of sight on her. She was basically pushing other people aside before he had even seen her, and while that in itself was nothing new, she seemed to be doing it with a particularly assertive amount of force this time. Like she was telling people to back away from him. Or more accurately, establishing it.

The rich girl attempted to throw her arms around Adrien, but he held up his arm so she would be blocked by it. That didn't exactly stop her, as she smoothly, like she had been attempting to do that all along, found her way to wrap her arm around his. That sight irked Marinette, and the room stood still.

Everyone had been told about Adrien and Marinette. That had been one of the many questions asked, ones that hadn't expected a serious answer, but had gotten one nonetheless. Quite a few people had seen it coming, and for the most part, were supportive of them. The ones who weren't supportive were mostly just indifferent to the establishment. But no one had tried to get between the two. Everyone around them knew what was about to happen. Even Sabrina, whom had followed and entered the room after Chloe had, seemed to be able to read the mood.

"Hello, Chloe." Adrien greeted, uneasily. He had always disliked the affection he showed her, particularly the physical kind, making him feel uncomfortable even before he had known of Ladybug. He had tried, many times to get her to stop, but at some point, he had dejectedly just come to accept it. He wasn't however, putting up with it anymore, and he fought to regain control of his arm. "Can you get off my arm, please?"

Chloe ignored him, acting like she couldn't notice his resistance. "I always thought someone as smart, brave and handsome like you had to be Chat Noir!"

"That's funny." Adrien muttered, able to snatch his hand back by pulling it from her with some force. He nearly fell over thanks to that force, but he was caught by Ivan, who stopped his fall. "Thanks, Ivan." He nodded at the large teenager before returning his attention to Chloe. "I don't remember you being a huge Chat Noir fan."

"Where did you get that idea from, Adrikins?"

Sighing, Adrien replied, "Maybe the times I had to save you as Chat Noir? You weren't exactly singing my praises then. You tried to get me to do your work if I remember the last time well enough. Not exactly the attitude you'd expect from someone you 'Admire'" He wasn't afraid to call out the blonde girl's actions. He had done that a lot as Chat Noir. He wasn't going to back out of doing so now.

Chloe looked like she was about to protest, to come up with an excuse, but Adrien cut her off. Marinette stood up and went over to his side at this point, as he was talking. "Look, Chloe, you're a friend of mine. We've been friends for a long time. Since we were, how old, five maybe? And I still consider you a friend, but there's a couple of things I need to make clear."

A face that looked like she had just been slapped appeared on Chloe's face. This marked the first time anyone had fully stood up to her. You had your more passive people who stood up to her, like Marinette and Alya, and they fought constantly, but not once had either of them gone as far as to establish the state of matter with her, whether she liked it or not.

"The first point being, I really don't like how you treat people." Adrien said. Something he had wanted to say for years. "You act like you're better than everyone else. And I really hate it. Second of all, I am not your boyfriend. I actually have a girlfriend, and I don't -"

"You _**what**?!"_ Chloe's high pitched shriek caused most of the people in the room to either cover their ears or flinch. She was known for being overly dramatic, but she was serious, her actions were far, far worse. The only ones who didn't either flinch or try to protect their eardrums were Marinette and Alya. They were the only ones who had expected that reaction. " ** _Who_**?!"

Clasping her hand quickly, Adrien gave his answer to her just as quick, with pride. "Marinette."

" ** _What_**?!"

There was definitely a sense of satisfaction that Marinette felt from seeing Chloe like this. Like it was some sort of retribution. Years of suffering from Chloe's bullying, her superiority to everyone around her, the way she acted like she was better than anyone else, and how she had gone out of her way to try and make Marinette's life miserable. This felt like justice in a way.

At the same time though, the blunette couldn't help but feel sort of... Bad for Chloe. She tried imagining what it would be like if their roles were reversed, and this was Adrien telling her, in front of everyone, with this sort of force, that he straight up did not love her.

The mere idea pained Marinette.

For the first time in memory, Chloe almost looked to be on the verge of genuine tears. "Adrien..."

The very dynamic of their entire class seemed to have just been thrown on its head. Adrien felt guilt. He didn't feel guilt for saying it how it was, that he loved Mairnette, and not Chloe, but Chloe had been his friend for years.

Despite how awful she could be, for being the one person who Adrien could call a friend and interact with throughout his father's reign over his life, she deserved a better explanation than that. "Chloe, listen..." Adrien started, softly, trying to show some sympathy. "It's not like I hate you or -"

"Her?!" Chloe shrieked again. " _Of everyone, **her**_?!"

She had been defeated. That's what this was. She had been defeated. She had lost. To Marinette.

She hadn't said a word, but Marinette seemed to have attracted the absolute sheer hate Chloe seemed to feel right now. The two didn't even exchange a glance. Chloe refused to even look at the blunette girl.

She just turned around and left, leaving a very confused Sabrina as to what she was supposed to do now. Coming quickly to her conclusion, she ran after her blonde companion, unsure of what to think.

There wasn't anyone who felt like Adrien or Marinette had been the bad guys in this situation. They all knew Chloe far too well. Many of them had predicted such an action, and in many ways, everyone felt glad that it happened. Chloe was the person who had caused so many fall outs, had upset so many of them. She had made nearly all of them upset or sad, no matter how hard they had tried to be nice to her. There wasn't really a person there who didn't at least think, in some way, that Chloe hadn't got what was coming to her.

But there wasn't anyone who didn't at least feel a bit sorry for her either.

"Well..." Adrien sighed. "That could have gone better."

* * *

 **I'd understand if you guys felt this was one of my weaker chapters, because it sure feels like it is to me, but there's so little I have to work with when it comes to Chloe, that this is honestly the best I could do.**

 **I know a lot of you were looking. Forward to Chloe's reaction, and its still not technically done. She's not going to get Akumatized again, I Promise that right now, I'm not going down that route. However, Akumatization will be a theme in a few chapters. Wink wink.**

 **With characters like Ivan and NAthaniel, they get a lot of hate, and I'm not sure why. Ivan doesn't strike me as a bad guy, and Nathaniel seems to get a lot of hate, and I don't really mind him. Maybe I'm biased because he's pretty much how I act in real life, shy, away from crowds, drawing and writing. I don't mind the guy. that's why I portrayed him as alright in this.**

 **Also, I received a message from someone basically telling me to shut my mouth when I said the attacks in France didn't excuse Xenophobia and racism. That person didn't use an account, so I can't call them out publicly.**

 **So. If you're reading this on ff. net, check the reviews. You'll see exactly who I'm talking about. You'll also see my response. Now for this one, I won't be publicly responding to it, because this is the first time, and I know the majority of you don't give a damn about politics.**

 **So let me make this clear. I tolerate no bigoted attitudes on any of my stories whatsoever, and I will not hesitate to call you out and publicly humiliate you for your actions. Consider that a PSA. I tolerate no hatred. We're here to smile at these two adorable little shits, its not a place for your Islamophobia, homophobia, racism, or anything else even akin to that. Freedom of speech does not mean I have to put up with your bullshit. And I sure as hell won't.**

 **Now that that's out of the way, you can find more from me on my Fanfiction. net, where the majority of my audience do lie.**

 **You can also find me on my YouTube, to see me make fun of every single person who opens their mouths.**

 **And now, because it occurs to me some of you may be interested, you can now find my Tumblr, for updates on writing, as well as the occasional MariChat or Amourshipping post I find hella adorable.**

 **The locations for all of these are in my profile ^_^**

 **And I'll be seeing you in whatever it is I do indeed decide to write next. See ya!**


	13. Undeserving Of Love

A sense of awkwardness was present throughout all of the lessons that Adrien was a part of. He did the same work as anyone else, answered questions, and corrected his mistakes. He remained quiet during lectures, and finished his assignments to the best of his abilities.

His teachers were clearly a bit uncomfortable with him being there. There was a certain amount of pressure that came when you found yourself in a position in which you teach a superhero. It wasn't like Adrien was judging the teachers based on performance or anything like that. Rather, it was more the fact that a Parisian hero was there. Someone who had held the entire cities respect had turned out not only to be a student, but a pupil that they taught. Pressure would be added quickly from that for anyone. It hadn't been intentional, but it had happened nonetheless.

Guilt found its way into Adrien's systems for a number of reasons. The added pressure on his teachers was one. He had spoken with Principle Damocles when he had been gifted a few moments of free time, and spoke to him about his position in the school. While he had been assured that his placement had not changed, he still got the sense that Damocles felt somewhat hindered by his mere presence. Something he had wanted to avoid.

Secondly, was how Chloe had run off. He had meant every word he said to her. Every single word he had spoken was the absolute truth, and everyone around him knew it. Even if he hadn't been Chat Noir, they would have agreed with him. They all knew that Chloe was that wort of person, and there hadn't been a single person who hadn't suffered in some way due to her. So it was weird that everyone at least felt a tiny bit sorry for her.

No part of Adrien told him to apologise. She had to learn that he wasn't going to tolerate the harsh attitudes she gave everyone anymore. She needed to learn that Adrien did not feel the same way about her that she claimed to. Was she being serious? Or was she being dramatic? Adrien honestly didn't know anymore. But it didn't matter to him.

He jotted down a few more notes regarding the English notes that were on the board, trying to preoccupy his mind.

Time passed quickly for the Parisian, and before he even realised it, the final bell for the day had gone off. He had to do a double check once he realised this, because it sure didn't feel like it had been an entire school day. He wasn't sure what it was that made the day go by faster. Maybe it was because he had been stuck inside various rooms and houses for the past week, with little to nothing to do. For the first time in a while, he felt a bit normal. He knew he wouldn't have a typically normal life again, though. That went out the window the second the mask flew off his face.

As he packed up, he saw that people were just walking past him, like nothing had happened. He couldn't be sure that they weren't forcing themselves to not stare at him, or if they were just trying to be respectful of his wishes to not be treated differently, or whatever. Regardless, he was glad to see that his class life at least hadn't changed too drastically.

"I suppose that went reasonably well." He heard Marinette say from behind him, already with her bag thrown over her shoulders, ready to go. She managed to have a smile on her face, despite everything. She always had a smile on her face. Just another thing that helped brighten up the day.

"It went better than I expected." Adrien nodded, placing his books and his work-pad into his bag, before zipping it up. "Principle Damocles told me my place here hadn't changed, so that's good..."

"Are you okay?" The blunette asked her boyfriend, worry and concern in her voice, her smile faded.

"I'm fine, I guess." Adrien said. He threw his bag over his shoulders and sighed lightly. "I don't know. Guess I'm not looking forward to seeing the mass of reporters that are gonna be outside." He could already feel them. Like he had some sort of sixth sense for reporters specifically, he could practically sense them outside the school.

"You're certain about doing these interviews?" Marinette asked, for maybe the seventh time that day. She was obviously worried, and while the blond Parisian appreciated that, he refused to let anything sway his choice in this.

"I am, Mari." He sighed again. "I can handle the reporters. I've done it for years. Once it's out of the way... It's out of the way. I guess I'm just not looking forward to the actual questions..."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"Thanks, bugaboo, but I'm fine. I'd rather you not end up being harassed by the media. At least not in front of me. I'd probably do something I'd end up regretting." He grinned, with a Chat-like smile on his face, showing his white teeth.

"Silly cat." Mairnette returned the smile. They found themselves alone in the room, everyone else having left. Nino and Alya had stayed for a bit longer, but had left when they saw that the two of the, were talking, so they had the classroom to themselves for a few brief moments, before setting off.

It was a far more comfortable feeling, being alone with one another than surrounded by people that they really weren't sure what they thought of them. Just the two of them, no hidden feelings anymore. It put them both at ease, knowing that they were loved by someone unconditionally, and that that person was right beside them.

And yet, Marinette still felt scared that something horrible would happen soon. When things seemed to go well for her, something horrible always happened to someone she loved.

"Adrien..." She tried to speak, but her own voice box cut her off. She couldn't discover the words that she wanted to convey quite now. But she wanted to talk to him about this fear she had. "I'm... Worried..."

"What about?" Adrien asked, looking around briefly to make sure no one was spying on their conversation. The mood seemed to have shifted oh so rapidly towards a sadness that Adrien nor Marinette could bare, but felt helpless to its crushing force.

"I just... I don't know... I... I'm so worried that something bad will happen soon..." Her hands shook as she spoke. "Whenever something feels like it's going right for me... Whenever I start to feel happy, that things couldn't get better... Something always ruins it all... And I'm worried... Because I feel like it might mean you'll get hurt..."

"Marinette, if I get hurt because of you, it's going to be because I don't want you to feel any pain." Adrien told her, his voice soft. "How long has it been since that kiss with Chat Noir? A couple of weeks?... Marinette, in that short space of time... You've gone from being a friend, to the single most important person in my entire life. You transform everything bad about my life, and it became something I was able to enjoy... I love you, Marinette. And I promise, I'm not gonna go anywhere. I'm right here." He took hold of her hand with both of his and grasped it tightly, but tenderly at the same time. "I'll be right here for as long as you need me... And want me, I guess..."

"There isn't going to be a point where I don't want you next to me..." The blunette said, a teary smile on her face.

"Then I guess you've got me for as long as you want then." Adrien smiled at her. "I love you. I really do." There would never be a point for the young hero in which saying that would lose even the slightest bit of honesty and feeling.

He received a tight hug for his words to his girlfriend, whom held onto him and didn't let go until she received a hug in return. Deep down, Marinette wondered what would have happened if she had known who Chat was before the fight with Overgrow. If she had had any inclination as to who was behind that mask. Would she have been able to help avoid this situation they found themselves in? Would she have had the strength to stop the Akumatized villain from harming the love of her life?

When she thought back on the memories she had of Chat Noir, the memories of her constantly rejecting him came into play. Many a time, she had thought that he was joking, being the jokey self that the Cat-themed hero liked to be. That he said all of the things he did for the cameras. But then there were the times she had simply straight up rejected him, or left him without an answer.

Every time she saw Chat Noir there with a pained expression on his face.

How many times had she unknowingly broken his heart?

And now here he was, pouring his own heart out to her. Showing his love to her, not even considering the effects to himself. Never once even thinking about all the times she had stomped on his heart as Ladybug.

She didn't deserve this.

"I'm sorry..." She whispered, a quiet dejection in her voice.

"You're what?"

"Nothing..."

* * *

Watching an interview of Adrien on the public television systems was honestly the least of the blunette girls concerns. She knew how they would go. She had helped him rehearse what he was going to say. A HB pencil in her hand, she sketched lines in her drawing pad, trying to get the shape of something she wanted to design.

Doodling away in her artistic endeavours, the young girl wondered what she had done to put herself in this sort of situation. Everything had been like a set of dominos, all falling into place as the previous thing collapsed, and she wondered to herself, how long would she and Adrien be able to last in this chain of events falling into place over and over again?

Adrien said he'd be there with her for as long as she wanted him to be, and she had said she never wanted him to go. And that was true. The idea of losing him was something she couldn't even bare thinking about. But did she even deserve that? Was she asking too much of him? There always was a priority of hers that wanted Adrien's safety and happiness over hers. She had risked her life to save his many times. Was being with him a hinderance to him?...

She found that unlikely, thinking objectively about it. Adrien was an honest person. He didn't talk about his feelings often, thanks to his father's raising of him, and Marinette understood that. When he did eventually spill his guts however, he was totally up front and brutally sincere. He wouldn't lie. He would cover up his feelings, but he would never lie about them.

A loud sigh escaped the young heroes lips, and she looked at what she had managed to sketch. A scarf, similar to the one that she had knitted for Adrien months ago for his birthday. The main difference regarding this particular scarf was that it was a dark, black colour, similar to that of the colour of Chat Noir's leather like material, only ever so slightly brighter, edging closer towards dark grey than it did pure black. The shading had come to that conclusion, seemingly on its own, despite her not really thinking about what she was drawing. It was also longer, and would easily reach to the floor if it wasn't wrapped around the wearer's neck correctly.

Considering for a moment, Marinette decided to grab some dark grey wool, which she kept in a draw close to her sketching area, and a pair of knitting needles, and began her work before she really thought about it. It was keeping her somewhat more distracted from her thoughts. As long as she kept busy, she could ignore some of these thoughts she was having.

"Marinette?" She heard her Kwami friend asking her from her side. "Are you okay?"

"Yes... No... I keep thinking that something bad is going to happen..." Marinette admitted to her tiny magical partner, still knitting the scarf, almost on automatic. "For Chat's identity was public, I had a similar feeling... So why do I feel like this now?... It's making me uneasy, Tikki, and I don't know how to explain it..."

"Many other Ladybug's have said similar things." The red Kwami informer her blue haired companion. "Many have found themselves in similar situation with their feelings towards Chat Noir's... But I don't think any have gotten themselves into quite as tricky a situation as you and Adrien have."

"You mean this isn't the first time a Ladybug and a Chat Noir have wound up together?"

"Goodness, no. It doesn't happen regularly, but it's not uncommon by any sense of the word. Both are selected not only for their individual merits, but by the ability the two individuals have to work together. How they would be able to interact on a personal level. You two were chosen this time around because you're practically a perfect match for each other, friendship wise at least." Tikki explained to her now jaw agate human friend.

"I don't suppose any of the past incarnations of us had a solution to our particular problem?" The blunette questioned. She knew the chances were slim to none, so she tried to put on a half joking voice to make it seem humorous. It didn't work that way.

Tikki shook her head. "Like I said, none of them ever had the issue of their identity being revealed. The ability to share and broadcast due to the internet hasn't been an issue previously for Ladybug's and Chat Noir's. You're the first generation to have this particular issue."

"The first generation to fail, huh?..." Marinette translated what Tikki was saying. She might not like to say it outright, but that was what had happened. They had been entrusted with the secrets of the miraculous' and had failed to keep them. And the fault just wasn't with Adrien. The fault also laid with her, and her failure as their de facto leader, and her failure to help Adrien when he had needed it the most. She knitted faster now, her knitting needles hitting one another frequently as she did so.

"It's not possible to change the past, Marinette." Tikki told her. "But that doesn't mean you've failed."

"It's my fault..." Marinette said, her eyes covered by the darkness that had crept into her room. She continued to knit, still producing the scarf at an impressive speed, but her worry and self-blame was paramount. "It's my fault..."

"Marinette..."

"Tikki, I just... Watched what happened to Chat. Inlet my surprise get the best of me... I'm supposed to be a hero. And I couldn't even be there for someone who needed me, and that someone who needed me was my own partner... And I just watched... And how does he repay that?... He tells me he loves me." Guilt rattled her voice, her pitch and tone shaking with nearly every other word, tears rolling down her eyes. "I let that happen to him, and he looks me in the eye and tells me he loves me... I don't deserve that... I don't... Deserve him..." When she said that, her needle slipped in her hands, cutting her finger lightly. It wasn't deep, but the shock of it caught the blunette off guard. It had been a very, very long time since she had messed up at knitting. "Ow... Damn it..." There was a light amount of bleeding, so Marinette licked it off her finger, her eyes still watery from what she had said. On a slightly positive note, she had already finished the scarf. A record for her, for certain. How quickly had time passed by them?

"If you really think that..." Tikki said, choosing her words carefully, "Then think about it from his perspective. He said he wants to be with you, didn't he? Would he lie to you?"

"I feel guilty, Tikki." Marinette told her partner. "I feel bad just standing here... And accepting that... That all this has happened to him, and he's the one who has to suffer for my mistake... That's what I can't take..."

"Princess?"

Sat in the window like he normally liked to do, there was her beloved Chat Noir, once again, always appearing at the worst times for the blunette girl. Marinette wasn't even sure what to refer to him as in this state. Did she call him by her birth name, or the hero name? "C - Chat?..."

He hopped into the room, light on his feet, and faced her, standing just half a meter away from the crying girl. "Are you like this all the time when I'm not around?..." He asked softly, inviting a response, but not demanding it.

"N-No..." Marinette said, wiping her eyes clear of the water pouring from her. "I-I just..."

"Marinette... What's wrong?" Chat inquired as to what was upsetting his girlfriend so much. Seeing her like this pained him. Deeply and truly pained him. He always wanted to see a smile on her face, and her in the verge of laughter. Not blaming herself for his situation.

It took Marinette a few minutes to gather the courage she needed to confess everything that she felt about their situation. About what had happened that day, about the guilt she felt, and how she felt undeserving of the love that he was so kind enough to shower her with. How she had done nothing but let him down, and his response was to show her nothing but love. How selfish she felt for accepting it. How much she despised feeling like she was the reason he now had to suffer.

Chat listened and allowed her to speak. He didn't comfort her as she spoke, for fear of making her more upset. He let her speak, listening to her carefully and intently. He didn't want to. He didn't want to listen to her tearing herself down, over and over again, when she was worth so much more that she have herself credit for. Listening to her shooting herself down was like being stabbed by tiny needles, all across his heart.

"I don't deserve you... After everything I did... I don't deserve -"

"Stop..." Chat spoke firmly, but he looked as pained as Marinette was. "Just... Stop... A lack of confidence doesn't suit you."

"Ch - Chat?..."

"Marinette, it never even occurred to me that what happened was your fault. The idea never even crossed my mind. Too many things happened at once to even make me consider blaming you... Because it's not your fault. It never was your fault, and it never will be your fault." Chat walked closer to her with every word, and placed his hands in her shoulders. "If you don't think you deserve me... That's fine. You do, but if you don't think you do... Then understand that I didn't fall in love with you because I felt you deserved it. I fell in love with an amazing, smart girl, someone who did everything she did with confidence and grace, who was able to make me smile just by her smiling. I fell in love with you because there's so much to love about you... And I love you. Not for anything silly like what you've done or what you look like. I fell in love with Ladybug because I'd never met anyone so confident and certain of themselves in my life, someone so heroic and selfless... And I fell in love with Marinette because she's a gentle soul, has so much creativity in her that it's practically about to burst... A girl who is kind and compassionate, and heroic, all mixed into one perfect person... That's who you are, Marinette. That's why I'm in a, quite frankly, stupid amount of love with you."

He embraced her in a tight hug, which she was slow and a bit hesitant to return. His words were warm and sincere, as usual. She could already tell he meant each and every word. He was warm... And... And... So many other words to describe him that she couldn't even articulate. She returned the hug in earnest, fighting back her tears again.

A surprising flash of light enveloped the two of them, which caught Marinette off guard briefly, until she realised it was just Chat turning into Adrien. Plagg flew off, grumbling something about a sappy speech he wanted no part of, while Adrien practically collapsed into Marinette's arms. The unexpected amount of weight that she suddenly found herself trying to keep up caught her totally off guard, and she and Adrien both fell to their knees.

"Sorry, Mari..." Adrien said, now sounding utterly exhausted, as opposed to his Chat Noir self, that still seemed somewhat peppy and eager to go. "I'm tired..." He said quietly, and he buried his head in her shoulder comfortably. "Can you just stay there for a while?... You're soft and warm..."

 _'He must have been running on adrenaline..._ ' Marinette thought to herself, blushing and smiling lightly at the comments he made about her. She stayed there for just a moment, enjoying the fact she could now feel his skin against hers, before she pulled away from him. "You need to get up. I have something for you."

"But I just got here..."

She couldn't tell if he was acting like a little kid for fun, or if he was seriously like this when he was tired. Either way, it was still cute. She smiled again, and went over to her desk, and presented Adrien with the scarf she had made for him. "Ta-da!"

"A scarf?"

"I made it while I was waiting for you. I thought you might like it." She said. She wrapped the scarf around his neck, gently enough so there was still enough room for him to breath. It covered his mouth and nose slightly, which made it look a bit too big for him, but Adrien didn't seem to mind.

"It's soft... And it's warm..." He closed his eyes, his fingers running over the soft wool used. "... And it smells like you..."

Going crimson, Marinette found herself embarrassed all of a sudden. "Wh - What the heck do I smell of?!"

"Blueberries and freshly baked bread..." Adrien replied without even hesitating. He ran the materials against his cheek, reminiscent of a cat using its paw to scratch behind its ears, and smiled at Marinette. "I love it, Mari. Thank you..."

Before the blue haired girl could reply, Adrien tugged the scarf off from his neck, and threw it around the back of hers. He then wrapped it around the back of his neck, and tightened on the scarf, bringing both of them barley a head away from one another, like they were in some sort of Christmas advert. "I can do this now, too." He told her with a Chat-like smirk.

Just a few moments ago, Marinette had been crying her eyes out. Now she was wrapped around in a warm scarf with her boyfriend, who was going out of his way to make her feel happy again. And it was working. Every little thing that he did made her smile grow bigger and bigger.

"Adrien..." She said, her eyes staring into her gorgeous green eyes of his own. "Thank you... Thank you so much for what you said..."

"Thanks for the scarf." Adrien replied smugly. "Let's me do this." He tugged on a free arm of the scarf, pulling both of them into a deep kiss neither of them could break away from.

* * *

 **I'm sorry. I can't help it. I love me my fluffy scenes.**

 **Helps things be exponent before stuff gets real dark real quick. I hope you enjoyed this chapter of MariChat, and I gotta say, this story has done better than I expected it to do. 20,000 reads on Ff. net and 1.1K on Wattpad, you guys really are the best reads I could ever ask for.**

 **I have a few more chapters planned for this, and the rest I'll make up as I go along. I'm not sure how long this story will last for. I'm having way too much fun writing it, so I assure you, we've got a few more chapters of this thing coming out yet lads, so brace yourselves ^_^**

 **Also, I got another xenophobic review from the same guy... Not even sure why he'd bother again, he's just proven he follows me or this story, so that narrows down our list of suspects. It turned from offensive to hilariously pathetic to be honest. Its funny stuff guys. Not the time or place for your attitudes lads. We're here to aww at these adorable two. Did you guys know I'm a racist, and that "French" is a race? I sure didn't until these reviews showed up. Anyway, enough of me mocking those morons, and I promise this will be the last time I bring them up unless they really top themselves on this one.**

 **If you want more from me, you can visit my Wattpad, where I update this story slightly earlier. I'm aiming to get 50 followers on there by the end of the summer, so if you have a Wattpad account, I do recommend going on there and following me for more updates on the stuff I do.**

 **You can also find me on my YouTube, and thanks to everyone who goes on there. Your comments mean a lot ^_^**

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 **Links to everything are, as always, in the description of my profile.**

 **And as always guys, I will see you, in whatever it is, that I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	14. Powers That Be

A dark, cold room, Hawkmoth found himself in, alone, along with the myriad of thoughts and plans, in deep contemplation. Both his hands rested atop the walking stick he twirled as a cane, his head bowed slightly, as he stared at his hands atop his staff, and in deep silence, only the fluttering of the moths around him being of any form of acknowledgement. A small crack of sunlight creeping in through the window shone upon the masked villain. He came here primarily when he planned to create another Akumatized subject to do his whims, to cause chaos to draw out, and to steal the miraculous' belonging to Ladybug and Chat Noir.

As of the past week though, he hadn't needed to do that.

He had the identity of Chat Noir. The entire city had that information. He had even gone into several news studios and answered many, many questions that were asked of him about his identity. Adrien Agreste.

One of the most unlikely people Hawkmoth could have ever expected. Many a time had he seen Agreste and Chat Noir in the same place, thanks to his telepathic powers. It had seemed impossible for them to be one in the same, but that must have been due to coincidence, and chance, allowing the young boy to change into his superhero alter ego out of sight of the villain through whom Hawkmoth looked though.

Possessing this knowledge had been key to his fight against the super hero duo, as it allowed him to launch attack after attack on them without having to worry about losing their location, and having to draw them out with more and more of his Akuma.

But the information he now had... Was different.

What could he do with this? Adrien Agreste, a famous model for a famous designer, living in Paris and going to a public school. None of those gave the villain a particularly large amount to work with. An average student who didn't stand out would have been a perfect target, no someone who was a famous face, and especially not when that face has been broadcasted to the entire world. Eyes would be on him at all times. He still needed his Akuma, as without them, separating Agreste from his classmates would be basically impossible.

Not to mention that the Agreste boy had not returned to his home in days. He had kept a close, but quiet eye on the movements of the model and his home. And at home, he was nowhere to be found.

But the powers of Hawkmoth, the power to sense the emotions of others, his Empathic powers, hinted at anger. Suppressed feelings of regret. Of loss. Of disbelief, and of fury.

Ingredients needed to Akumatize a person.

He had not attempted to Akumatize another miraculous holder, and was convinced it did not work that way. His own Akumatizations did not work on him, so he doubted it would work on another miraculous holder. Miraculous holders held an immunity to their own powers, so as not to destroy themselves when using them. Certain elements of that traced over. Miraculous' were tools for good, and thus, could not directly affect one another. While a direct attack from Chat Noir's Cataclysm attack would not hurt him, the same logic applied to him. Hawkmoth should, in theory, be unable to Akumatize another individual who possessed a miraculous.

Then again... Did that apply to their civilian forms? Was it not worth the chance to get hold of those items of power?

" _I don't want to be treated any differently to how I already was before."_ The boy had said on camera, many times, punctuating the point again and again. He was used to interviews, and in front of people. He looked like a regular when he answered the various questions thrown at him, but he focused purely on saying that. _"I only want to be treated as Chat Noir when I am Chat Noir."_

The villain knew what the hero wanted. He knew what he desired the most. To blend in. To not stand out in the crowd. He wanted to be seen as a regular student, like any other child his age. He didn't want to be looked at like he was superior, different, better or worse for something he did. He was a humble person.

Underneath that however, was a dark corruption of his heart. He wanted people to leave him the hell alone. He wanted the media to stay quiet about him. He wanted to live his life the way he wanted to, without ever having to be judged as both the boy, and as the cat.

A few words could change the very fabric of a person's mind... if administered correctly.

He wanted everyone to forget who he was.

He wanted their minds to turn...

 _Blank._

* * *

One thing Adrien had kept on his person since he made his mad dash home to steal some of his clothes back, was a necklace, which had a picture of both him, and his mother inside it. The only reminder he had of her that wasn't just picture on some kind of computer screen, but a physical reminder that his mother had, at least at some point, been there with him.

It was a necklace that had belonged to her, which she had gifted to him, just before she disappeared. He had always kept it close to him at all times, like that itself was his miraculous. It was precious to him, sentimentally. He missed his mother dearly. He had no idea where she had gone, but in reality, he could not bring himself to blame her for leaving. Had he been old enough, he probably would have asked to go with her. It wasn't a surprise that she left, seeing as his father had always been so cold to them...

What had she seen in him, Adrien wondered. Was he a different man years ago, bright eyes, eager and able to smile and laugh? Was there a spark of passion in his soul back then? Because if there had been, it had gone to die years ago.

Nearly an entire week since Chat Noir was outed as Adrien Agreste, and not once had his father even attempted to get into contact with his son. No doubt reeling from all the publicity he was receiving, both positive and negative. He had barely even seen his father over the past month, being so busy with work and meetings. It wouldn't honestly surprise him if his father hadn't even noticed his disappearance had his identity not been plastered all over the city.

Part of Adrien was glad in a way. Over the past few weeks, he had seen more, done more, and learned far more about how love was supposed to be than he ever had with his father. Obviously it was different with Marinette... But she helped him see just what sort of a life he had been living. A loveless life now would be so empty... So... Dark and... Empty and... Nothing. There would honestly be nothing in his life without love now.

He had lost basically everything else, his privacy, his alter ego, and his chances of being a regular school teenager, and he didn't want to lose love as well.

"Of all the people to wind up with my miraculous, I had to get the one person in all of Paris who is obsessed with love." Plagg's voice shot out from nowhere, not restricting itself in any way, taking no consideration for the sleeping individuals in Marinette's home.

"Plagg, be quiet!" Adrien hissed, putting a finger on his lips to signify to the Kwami to not make any noise. "Marinette is still sleeping!"

"Why do you humans even have the concept of love?" Plagg continued asking, not minding his voice. "I get that it's nice and all. I've seen way too much of you two to deny that. But does it actually serve a purpose?"

"Don't Kwami feel love?"

"I haven't."

"That's because you're as simple as they come, Plagg. If it has nothing to do with cheese, you don't want to know about it. Now keep it down!" Adrien said, making sure to keep his voice as low as he could.

"Mmm... Too late..." Adrien heard Marinette stir from her sleep, moving to sit upright, and rubbing her tired. She didn't keep her hair in their pigtails in her sleep, and so, her hair was now messy and unkempt, and covered one of her eyes slightly. She had only just awoke, but she stilled looked adorable to Adrien.

"Mari... Sorry Plagg and I woke you up..." Adrien said, flicking his Kwami with his finger with as much force as he could muster. The force sent Plagg back a few inches, but he quickly returned to his original position.

"No... I was already sort of awake..." Marinette reassured him, rubbing her eyes and covering up a yawn. She shuffled over to the side of her bed and let her feet hand over the edge as she joined the blond model and the Kwami in their conversation. "I don't really sleep too much anymore..."

"What? Why? Are you feeling alright?" Adrien questioned with a concerned look on his face.

"Yeah, I'm okay... I'm just... Still adjusting to all of this, I think. Like I think I'll go to sleep one night, and then I'll wake up to find out this," She gestured to her and Adrien, pointing at both of them a few times before carrying on her sentence, "Will have all been a dream."

"I promise you, this isn't a dream, Mari." Adrien smiled at her. She still had these small, silly phobias regarding their relationship, which Adrien couldn't be more amused by.

"Unless we all live in someone's dream, and we'll be erased from existence if that person wakes up." Plagg commented, hovering between tired blunette and the happy blonde. He made his voice as sarcastic as he could manage, seeing as he didn't believe in that sort of superstition when he was in ancient Egypt, and he wasn't going to believe it now.

"Well, if that is the case, I can't think of a better existence to have shared." The young Parisian replied without hesitation, smiling at Marinette brightly.

That sparked a blush from the young girl, and she looked away in impulsive embarrassment. How did he manage to say things like that so straight faced, without even seeming slightly embarrassed by it? "Why are you making me blush so early?..."

"It doesn't take a lot." Adrien said with another smirk. He had noticed how prone she was to blushing, and had discovered that making her blush didn't require a lot of effort. She seemed to go red just being around him. Tipping her towards blushing didn't take much more than a simple comment, and then her face would be red like a tomato.

"Don't tease me!" Marinette told him, a small smile on her face.

"I'm not... Much."

The two of them often had small little fights like this, that weren't even really fights. More lovers banter back and forth. Both the teenagers simply found it fun to have their little harmless spats.

It had been just a few days since Adrien had stayed with the Dupain-Cheng's. Both of Marinette's parents had been amazingly supportive and hospitable to the young blond. Something that Adrien wasn't sure he'd ever be able to repay them for being. They had been so kind to him after their initial meeting, that they almost were like an actual family. They treated him like they treated Marinette, like Adrien had always been there.

A few days had passed since Adrien made his announcement to not only his classmates, but the whole world. He had done at least five interviews, far more than he had expected to have to do, but the effect it had gave him his desired result. Reporters were, for now, leaving him alone. If something major happened, they'd surely hound him again, but for now, they had gotten lost.

Chloe was still as bitter as to be expected. She never spoke anymore. Not even a sound from her. When she'd normally be chastising, bullying and insulting others, she just remained silent. Adrien could see she looked at Marinette with vengeful eyes. She was beyond furious. But there wasn't anything she could do that would change Adrien's mind.

He loved Marinette. He didn't love Chloe. She was just going to have to accept that.

He and his girlfriend still continued their activities as Chat Noir and Ladybug, and there was definitely a lot more media focus on those two. Many reporters trying to get Ladybug to give up her identity had practically become the normal for them. Chat had not responded well to those, going as far as to rip their equipment out of their hands, and break several cameras. Had he not been a superhero, he would have probably been charged with property damage, and he had received plenty of scolding's from Ladybug later on.

Underneath the huge layer of love and happiness Adrien felt every day in his life now, there was something darker brewing inside of him.

"Adrien, do you want to get some breakfast here, or on the way to school?"" Marinette asked him, her cheery voice breaking through his deep thoughts. He returned to reality and was faced with a cute smile from the most important girl in the world to him.

He stumbled on his words a little bit as he snapped back into the real world. "I - um, sorry, Mari, I was thinking about... Something." It wasn't the best excuse he had, nor was it the most convincing, or mind resting one, but it was all he had.

"Are you okay?" She asked him, her voice becoming soft as it always did when she was worried. The cute way her hands would tighten themselves as they hovered above her chest, and how her blue eyes showed clear concern for him always made Adrien's heart beat a bit faster than normal.

"Yeah... Just some personal thoughts, that's all."

"You want to talk about it?"

"No thanks, Mari. I'm alright."

A small and soft smile arrived on Marinette's adorable face as she nodded in her understanding. She gave him a small but warm hug, not needing to give him more comfort than that. "Okay. Just let me know if you want to, okay?"

"I will, Bugaboo." Adrien assured her. He was lucky to have her. He knew he was, and he wouldn't ever let himself forget that fact. He was very, very, supremely lucky to have someone like her, who cared for him as much as she did. Someone who made him feel as loved, and as cared for, as she made him feel. "Thank you."

 _'If only you knew, Marinette...'_ He thought sadly, as he held her close. ' _If only you knew some of the things they said about you...'_

* * *

School wasn't that bad. Adrien still got comments from people about his hero life, often commenting on how he took down a criminal or a thief or whoever the heck else he had dealt with the previous night. Sometimes, people stared at him. Other times, they didn't even acknowledge him.

His teachers treated him a little better though. Clearly nervous by the fact a superhero was sat barely a few meters away from them, many of them were disturbingly nice to him, unbefitting a French school.

Adrien hated it.

He didn't want to be looked at differently. He didn't want to be treated any better for being a superhero. He didn't want preferential treatment. Those were the very reasons he wanted to go to a public school in the first place, as opposed to private tutors his father hired to keep him restricted in his freedoms. The media had done the same thing with cameras and video tapes, and nothing short of cosmetic surgery and a fake ID was going to make that all go away.

He really, really hated it.

Break-time was often the worst part for the young Parisian. He had always turned heads when he was in break. He was a model, and considered to be a handsome model at that. He apparently just had that natural charm with people, but he was used to that, so he didn't mind it so much. But now that he was Chat Noir publicly?

Handsome. Model. Rich. Chat Noir.

There really wasn't a bigger four word combination to attract nearly every head in the school. Although curiously enough, they never seemed to approach him, only watching from afar, knowing of his relationship with Marinette. That was one thing more Adrien had to be thankful to his beautiful girlfriend for.

But what he had seen...

The internet was a very cruel place to be. Adrien had known this since he was a kid. There were a lot of mean people behind screens, saying things they would never say to other people's faces, people too cowardly to say anything to someone face to face. And people who were really just nasty people.

And they all had a new target.

Marinette.

He hated it.

Since Adrien was revealed to be the cat-themed superhero, and his and Marinette's relationship had been made public, Adrien hadn't even been able to use the World Wide Web without seeing someone insulting Marinette.

And that made him utterly furious.

Articles, emails, messages, anything that could be done, someone had done it, all as a way of demonising Marinette. So many various excuses and reasons, so much hate for this girl. Over the stupidest things. Many called her ugly, far, only loving Chat for fame. Anyone who knew her knew that this was complete and utter _bullshit_.

Not that that had any effect on the scum behind the monitors. People so desperate for attention that they would insult someone they didn't even know, someone so close to him... And for what?

He hated it.

He sat alone, with a drink in his hand, of cold, icy water on a bench while Marinette was speaking to Alya about something. He had decided not to pry. He could feel people looking at him, and he did his best to avoid their gazes. Instead, he kept his eyes glued to his phone, finding it impossible to find anything on this thing without it being related to him in some way. He had expected backlash against him. He had expected backlash against Marinette.

But not to this extent.

He hated it.

"Adrien. Relax." Plagg told him, sat on his shoulder. "They don't know what they're talking about. You know they don't."

Depressed, he sighed. Affectionately, he gently took hold of the pendent he kept on his person, and looked at the picture of him and his mother again, remembering when life was just simply easier for him. He couldn't help but lose himself in his thoughts. Where was she? Did she know he was Chat Noir? Was she proud? Or did she even care?

Life was a mess right now. Adrien knew that. It really was a mess right now. It was his own doing, and he had to live with those consequences... But he wished he could change the past so much...

"-Drien! Look out!"

Hearing his name called out, the blond Parisian's head shot up from his pendent and his thought process, and looked at a sea of worried faces staring at him. As he looked up, he saw what it was, just a second too late to do anything about it.

A darkened butterfly... No. An Akuma.

Akumatization happened to people who were usually alone, so nothing could have prepared anyone for an Akuma infection directly in front of them. It had been unheard of. And Adrien had been caught completely unaware. Had he responded a second earlier, his reflexes might have kicked in to save him. Landing on, and merging with his pendent, a dark force filled Adrien's mind.

"Chat Noir." A low, menacing voice, and a visual of the villain appeared very clearly in Adrien's mind. The cause of all of Paris' problems wore a mask, like a balaclava, concealing his identity. He stood in a dark, empty attic like room, surrounded by moths and butterflies which he transformed into Akuma. Like the one infecting him right now. Adrien knew he was being controlled. Manipulated. But all the same, he responded. Like he had no choice in the matter.

"Hawkmoth." Adrien responded. He had a tone of disgust as he said the name, but he also seemed to welcome the evil presence. This was, in part, due to the infection effects of an Akuma infection.

"That I am. And your name now is Blank." Hawkmoth told the Parisian model. "I'm giving you the power to wipe people's memories. The memories you select, of course. With this power, you can erase the memories of everyone that knows you are Chat Noir. You will be a regular high school student once more." His voice lowering, he spoke softly, like he was reaching out to help an old friend, despite the two being enemies. "And I shall not ask anything of you in return for this power. Consider it a... Field test."

As he spoke, Adrien looked like a man possessed to his classmates. He had stood upright upon speaking to the villain on the other side of his mind, and his eyes were now narrow, focusing intensely on absolutely nothing, and dark circles appeared underneath his eyes. As he heard Hawkmoth's offer, a wide grin appeared on the hero's face. A menacing smile.

With delicate emotion, Hawkmoth opened his hand, as a symbol of agreement and co-operation. "You shall be able to wipe the memory of everyone in Paris... And I will not ask for your miraculous, nor that of Ladybug's. All I want is for you to use this power to help yourself. What do you say? Do we have a deal?"

Inside the young Parisian's head, he had to concede. It sounded like a very, very good deal. The power to wipe people's minds... The ability to control their memories... To mind blank them. To make all of this go away. To make all the pain and worry go away.

It would create the life he wanted again. A life in which he was not the centre of attention as he always was. A life in which he was just a regular high school student again.

A life in which he could spend his days with Marinette, quietly and alone, without having to fear such media backlash for simply holding one another's hand when walking down the streets.

Why wouldn't he take this opportunity?

"I say..."

As he thought this, the dark, black bubbles of a successful Akumatization began to form around the models body, starting by covering up half of his face, and running down his entire left arm in a matter of seconds, like he was being quickly covered in large, black spots in response to a plague. He was going to be normal again. He was going to have a quiet life with Marinette again.

Marinette...

With his right eye not being covered, Adrien was able to spot his girlfriend trying to keep others away from him. Tears in her eyes. She was crying.

Did she not understand what this meant? They could live their lives, love one another, and they could be together without the pretext of doing it for cameras. They could do anything they wanted as a normal couple. They could hold hands in the public without fear of reporters jumping out at them...

So why was she crying?...

 _'Because you're Chat - Freaking - Noir.'_

Suddenly, Adrien remembered why he did what he did. He fought to protect people. He fought to help make a difference in the city. He fought because it was the only escape he had from the mundaneness of everyday life as the model Adrien Agreste. He fought to protect those he loved.

He fought for Marinette. For Ladybug. For the girl who made him feel like he was a person. Like he was alive.

He was stronger than this.

He didn't need power from someone like Hawkmoth.

And he didn't want to make Marinette cry.

"I say..." Adrien said to the villain beyond his reach, with a fierce scream that took all the energy he had left over. He could already feel the Akuma taking over. He had to fight it. "I say... Get... The hell out of my head!"

Hawkmoth saw the resistance that the miraculous holder was showcasing now. Other cases, it wasn't a huge matter to get a target to agree. The fact that this child was able to resist where so many physically and mentally stronger than him were unable to, suggested that his miraculous affected him even outside of his transformation. However, the young teenager still seemed to be in the mid-way between Akumatization, and human, so he went to use a method he had never used before to complete the transformation, by force. This power was known as Ensnare, and it would allow him to force one of his victims into Akumatization, regardless of their choice and will.

As it was activated, Adrien felt what could only be described as the sharpest, and most burning pain he had ever endured of his entire life. His head shot backwards and he began to scream in agony and pain as he felt the darkness try to corrupt his body without his consent. It was utterly excruciating, and basically crippled his ability to move.

This was the first time anyone there had ever seen an Akumatization happen in front of them, and marked the first time anyone anywhere had seen anyone resisting the effects. It looked like something straight out of a horror movie. Hearing of what happened and seeing it happen, literally a few meters away from you, were two very different things.

Marinette wanted to help him. She desperately wanted to help him. But what could she do? Short of turning into Ladybug, in front of everyone here... She didn't know what had been Akumatized. She hadn't seen. She had kept everyone else away, for their own safety. She had to have faith. She forced herself to remember, Adrien was the strongest person she knew. If anyone could withstand an Akumatization, it was him.

Moving his hands felt like he was swimming through a pool made of needles, as sharp pains rocked throughout his nerve endings and pain receptors. He moved slowly, like his bones were made of concrete, as that made the pain somewhat bearable. One of his eyes forced itself shut, and his white teeth were gritted as hard as his jaw could clench. They were so tightly shut, blood began to seep from his jaw, where his tooth seemed to sink into his gums from sheer force.

His body fought against him every inch of the way, but he was able to slowly reach towards his neck, and the pendent that he treasured so much, now in his hands. Destroying this would stop his Akumatization... The one physical thing he had of his mother.

He apologised to his mother in his head. He'd have to mend the pendent if he got the chance. He didn't want to do this, but it wasn't like he had a whole load of options. He wrapped his fingers around the cold, metallic chain around it, and ripped it from around his neck with force, letting it fall and crack on the ground. With a heavy heart, and an even heavier foot, Adrien slammed his boot onto the pendent, hearing a sickening crack as he did.

Almost immediately, the dark bubble like substance on his body disappeared into the air, releasing him of his torment. The pain went away immediately, but he still felt it, lingering in his body. Exhausted, he collapsed, breathing heavily.

"Adrien!" The model was far too out of his mind right now to stand up, much less really acknowledge much of whatever else it was that was going on, but he was able to tilt his head up to see Marinette rushing towards him as quickly as she could.

Neither of them really considered the effects of this.

The Akuma crawled from the cracks in the pendent. The normal behaviour of such a creature was to fly and retreat, returning to Hawkmoth so as not to waste the energy and power Hawkmoth had bestowed into them. But this one was an abnormality. It didn't heed the regular rules.

It attack a new target. Marinette.

"Marinette, wait!" Adrien warned, noticing the unusual behaviour of the evil creature. He didn't notice it in time though.

The blue haired girl didn't even receive the warning before it was too late. With a quick dart from the evil creature, attacking an item of clothing on her person, Marinette had already been infected. The same dead stare, the same responses. The same disturbing, eerie smile. Adrien could imagine the promises Hawkmoth was making her. Was she strong enough?

She was stronger than he was. She didn't even allow herself to feel tempted by the corrupt powers Hawkmoth promised her, refusing them outright without hesitation. This would only lead to the power Hawkmoth had used on Adrien. The unbearable pain.

The process repeated itself, but this time, Adrien wasted no time. Using his adrenaline that was coursing through his veins, the pain he felt numbed by the opioids in his brain, producing a massive painkiller effect, he shot to his feet and, before the dark bubbles could form around her skin, he targeted the object that had been Akumatized. Her hair bobbles.

"Sorry about this, Mari." Adrien said silently, before ripping them both to pieces. He was too late to stop her from feeling no pain at all, but it was a far cry to whatever it would have been had he not stepped in when he did.

Collapsing as he had done, Adrien held onto Marinette as she fell, lowering her down gently, so she didn't hurt herself on the floor. He looked over her, worried for any damages to her. Aside from the pain, she was fine. "Marinette, are you alright?"

"I'm... Okay, Kitty." She responded to him with a weak smile. She was trying to hide the feelings that she had, but the effects were obvious. She was in pain. There was no way she wasn't. Adrien had been screaming out in agony. It took her some serious willpower not to do the same. She was hurting, that much was clear.

And that was more than enough to justify force.

"Plagg." Adrien said, standing up after he had gently placed Marinette on the ground. His voice was dark, low, and there was clear hatred in his tone, that made even his Kwami shiver. He was beyond furious. Bloodthirsty almost. Someone had hurt Mari. He wanted revenge, consequences to himself be damned. "Claws out. _Now_."

Complying with his request, marked the first time Adrien had transformed willingly in front of his classmates. Some took videos, some took photos, and all of them watched in sheer amazement as he changed from Adrien Agreste, shy, handsome model, to Chat Noir, leather suited superhero, known for having quite a cocky attitude and an ego.

With his teeth shown, his glare at his target, and his claws primed, he almost looked like a villain.

"Adrien?..." Marinette called for him lightly, but Chat didn't hear. He was already focusing on his target.

Hawkmoth had decided it necessary to attack him during school hours. The one time he had where he could just be the person he wanted to be. A regular high school student. That was all he wanted. What was so hard to understand about that? But then, Hawkmoth had finally crossed the line. He had hurt Marinette.

That Akuma was not going to return to Hawkmoth. Not this time. Chat refused to allow that to happen.

How long had that evil scumbag terrorized them? How many times had he hurt people in Paris? Hundreds of times, surly. The damage he frequently caused the city was beyond belief. Adults, students, even children. It didn't make a difference who he had to use in order to get what he wanted. He had no concept of ethics.

But never had Adrien, nor Chat Noir felt this level of sheer, unrepressed hatred towards him. In truth, part of him had always been a bit grateful for Hawkmoths existence. Without him, Adrien may never have become Chat Noir. He may never have gotten that sense of freedom. He may never have met Ladybug. He may never have seen Marinette that way. He may never have fallen in love with the beautiful blue haired fashion designer.

But now... He had hurt her. He had hurt the most important person in the world to Chat.

Leaping as high as he could go, he chased after the Akuma, fleeing from its pursuer as quickly as it could. With his speed and reflexes, Chat didn't need long to catch up, climbing and jumping up onto the roof of his school. In his palm, he had already prepared his Cataclysm attack. He had a single shot to eradicate this Akuma from the world

"You're not getting away from me!" He shouted at the Akuma, launching himself at the butterfly-like creature, he shot his hand forward, covered in a dark black destructive force. " _Cataclysm_!"

One inch.

That was all he missed by.

The Akuma took a change of course, shooting up by a single inch, making Chat miss his attempt, and nearly destroying a wall, and narrowly avoid falling off the roof. To stop himself from creating a huge amount of damage from destroying the wall, Chat had no choice but to slam his hand into a fist, dispersing the ability he wielded. Having used up his one use of Cataclysm, Chat Noir didn't have anything he could use to destroy the Akuma. He couldn't capture the disgusting creatures like Ladybug. And he had missed his chance to destroy it.

He slammed his fist into the wall, his claws digging into his palm. "Damn it!"

* * *

To put it simply, Hawkmoth was stunned.

He wasn't surprised that it hadn't worked on Adrien. that was to be expected. He only attempted this to confirm his theory. He still needed more time and power to force an Akumatization...

But why hadn't it worked against the girl?

He had planned to use her to attack the young hero. He doubted, that the girl was now public knowledge he was dating, would be an issue to transform. And that it would make Adrien not want to attack her.

But she resisted too...

The evil-doers eyes widened. "Could it be?..."

* * *

 **To the person who asked why Chapter 14 went offline... thats a very good freaking question '-'  
Reupdate time!**

 **We're getting a little it darker from here on out guys. The image I have of Adrien is fiercely protective of Marinette and anyone he loves. I plan on exploring that a lot in the coming chapters.**

 **I also am trying my best to get new chapters out for you as quickly as i can, but It's getting difficult to keep up with the speed and quality of work... So, sorry for updates coming less and less. I'll finish this damn work, I swear it!**

 **Once again, I'd love to say a massive thank you to all of you for reading this work, and supporting it. This has become my most followed series so far, with over 200 of you guys along for the ride on Ff. net. Thats amazing, and you guys rock.**

 **You can find more from me on my Wattpad, for independent works as well as slightly sooner updates.**

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 **Additionally, you can find me on my Tumblr, GamingEmpire, for updates and such.**

 **Links to all of these can be found in my profile, and I'll see you all in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	15. Plays of Power

In thanks to the attempted Akumatization, school was let out earlier than usual that day. The risk of another attack was too large for the school to be able to justify remaining open, so the children were sent home to minimise the risks to them.

However, Adrien and Marinette remained for a while longer. Primarily, because they had to be looked over by a medical professional. This was the first recorded instance of an Akumatization causing someone physical pain, and thus had to be looked at for any damage to the body that needed examination.

According to the scans the two of them underwent, Marinette had, by far and away, less damage to her body. This was mostly in part due to her not having suffered for even a quarter of the time Adrien had, and, thankfully, there were no serious complications for her to worry about. All she would need is a bit of rest.

Adrien, on the other hand, was a different story. He had been under the corrupting effect of an Akuma for longer, and the damage to his body wasn't negligible. X-Rays indicated there were, in his muscular structure in several places, torn ligaments. Additional scans also showed a heavy strain on his muscles where the dark glow had spread, and could affect his ability to perform certain tasks with said body parts. While these would heal on their own in time, it posed a danger to Adrien should he over-exert himself while they healed. This was primarily down the left arm of his body, as that had taken the majority of the corruption. This arm was also, additionally, Adrien's weaker arm, meaning it had suffered even more than his right arm would have done under the same circumstances. It wasn't like it was broken, but it would make using it far more difficult. No strenuous activity with it was what the doctor ordered, but that order was unlikely to be followed. After all, Adrien was freaking Chat Noir. It wasn't until Marinette made him promise to her not to overwork his arm that he agreed not to do so.

There was still a genuine physical feeling of pain for the young hero, now that the painkilling effect his brain produced had worn off. He had been given a few painkillers to take there and then, as well as some for the next few days, but they weren't as effective as Adrien would have liked. "Argh..."

"Does it still hurt?" Marinette asked. The two of them were now leaving the school building, walking through the corridors, and past their lockers. Neither of them particularly needed anything from them, so they didn't slow down.

"Yeah." Adrien said, moving his arm in a manner similar to that of lifting up a weight. "Still feels pretty stiff too." He sighed through his teeth. "What the hell is Hawkmoth doing?..."

"What were _you_ doing more like?" Marinette asked, becoming serious with him, aspects of her Ladybug persona slipping through. "I thought you said you weren't going to transform in front of other people, especially at school! You know if anyone finds out how your miraculous works -"

"I know, I _know_ , Mari." Adrien told her, holding his hands up in a mock surrender. He sighed, dropping his hands a moment later. "Sorry. I saw you hurt and... I pretty much went into automatic..."

"You... Used your Cataclysm, didn't you?"

"Yeah? And?"

"...What were you planning in doing with that?"

"I had every intention of _disintegrating_ that thing." Adrien stated with blunt, brutal honesty, which managed to surprise Marinette. "If I'd been a second faster, I might have got it."

"That was dumb." Marinette sighed. "We don't know if that has any effect on Akuma... Or you."

Adrien allowed himself to sigh once again, resetting his emotional cognitive functions. He knew that objectively, it was a dumb plan, and he had been fuelled along with nothing but sheer adrenaline, converted into energy to boost his actions for only a few moments. It erased his logical thinking, and spurred him into action.

He had wanted that Akuma dead.

"I know you're right..." Adrien conceded. "I just..."

"I know." Marinette reassured him gently, holding into his hand, and wrapping his fingers around her own. She used her other hand to grab the same arm, and pulled herself closer to him, so she could rest her head on his shoulder as they walked. "I felt the same way after you fought Overgrow. I saw you hurting... And I wanted to destroy that Akuma myself."

Holding her hand tightly, but not to the point of pain, Adrien smiled and enjoyed the warmth her skin had. "That's right... I forgot you saw all of that... I guess it's easy to forget when it happens to you, but not so much when it's someone you love."

"I guess so... And I do love you, Adrien." Marinette told him. Her stutter hadn't totally disappeared whenever she said that, but she was getting better by the day. Her face still went red when she said it. That wasn't going to change any time soon.

"I love you too, Mari." He replied with his usual level of emotion that never failed to send butterflies flying into Marinette's stomach. He rested his head gently atop hers, making a light purring noise as he did so. Like this, he was able to catch her scent again, that familiar combination of blueberries and freshly baked goods. He noticed that his scarf, which Marinette had gifted him only a short time ago, had a spare length dangling from the rest, so, he threw that around her neck like he had done previously, the cloth standing out against her blue hair.

"Again with this scarf sharing?" Marinette asked with a cute smile.

"Hey, I'm fond of it. And I'm fond of being close to you a lot more, my sweet, adorable Bugaboo."

Adrien pushed the door to the outside of the school with his free hand. They were greeted with a rainstorm, and dark, grey clouds, like the day that had first spoken together, and the day they had hugged. The rain was lighter this time around, but still present. The streets were damp and cars were speeding by, their headlights reflecting in the puddles on the road.

"Sweet talker." Marinette said with a small laugh.

"You know you're fond of it."

"I'll also admit I've grown a _liiiiittle_ bit more fond of your puns too."

" _Claw_ -some."

Another laugh from Marinette. "Keep this up and you might get to be a bit closer to me than normal." She flirted.

She didn't get a response though. She felt his head rise, and his grip around her fingers tighten. When she looked up at him, his eyes were focused. Piercing. Glaring at a specific target.

"Adrien?"

In front of Adrien, at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the school, was a black limo. With Nathalie waiting outside it, a clipboard in her hand. She didn't bother using an umbrella. She never seemed to use one in bad weather. The person whom had made sure Adrien kept to his schedule, daily. He hadn't seen her since his identity was released to the public. She hadn't even come here with the limousine beforehand

She and Adrien made eye contact. They acknowledged one another's presence. She hadn't attempted to show up beforehand, probably due to Gabriel's direct orders. Adrien had nothing against Nathalie. She was just doing her job, and he appreciated and understood that. It wasn't her fault that his father had her do all manner of things. But the sight of her right now filled him with disgust.

To the young hero, he knew precisely what this was. This wasn't an invitation back home. This wasn't a checkup on the blond model.

This was a demand from his father.

 _Return home._

 _I am still in charge of you._

 _You will do as I say._

"The hell I will." Adrien muttered to himself quietly, behind gritted teeth. Looking down at his blue haired girlfriend, he smiled. "You know what? Text your parents. Tell them we'll bring back a Chinese, or a takeout or something."

"What?!" Marinette looked more surprised than anything else, that he was able to just say something like that so casually. Takeout's in Paris were not cheap. She was lucky if she was allowed one for her birthday. The ability to just purchase one was ridiculous to the blunette. They were an immense luxury. "That - That's _ridiculously_ expensive!"

"I think you're _ridiculously_ forgetting that, point A, I'm, _ridiculously_ , Chat Noir, and point B, I'm _ridiculously_ wealthy. I think I can scrape together enough money." Adrien reminded her with a bright smile. "Come on. It's the very least I can do for everything you and your parents done for me. What d'ya feel like?"

The two of them made their way back down the steps, Adrien making sure to tighten the scarf around them once again, knocked loose by his sudden upright jump. He returned to the same affectionate position that the two of them were in previously. A few drops of rain landed on his face, but he totally ignored them.

Like he did Nathalie. He walked straight past her without a word. Without even so much as a second glance, he and his blue haired love continued down the street. He didn't even try to steal a glance from the corner of his eye. He just carried on walking. She didn't exist in his world.

It seemed like Marinette realised in that moment what Adrien was actually doing. He wanted an excuse. A reason to get away from that limousine. Both of them knew that he would have to return home eventually... But not like that. Not by his father sending his employees to pick up the boy like nothing had happened. His son was pulverised, humiliated, and has been the focus of media onslaught for days. Did that not at least warrant arriving to see him in person? Not handing it off to the secretary.

Was this... A power play?

She was quick to send a message to her mother a slightly overlong message explaining things in a slightly overlong detail. "Urm... There's a noodles place not far from here I kinda like..."

* * *

While he disliked the actual lessons he had been given, Adrien certainly did like the fact he had learned to speak traditional Chinese. It was a skill he was rather proud of, despite it being something he had had no choice in learning, and he did like to keep it honed sharp. He would frequently use websites to remind himself of the various symbols and the pronunciation. It was a skill he had a vested interest in keeping fresh in his mind. It would take him years to relearn it all if he forgot it.

He sat on the floor, just underneath Marinette's closed window, his iPad connected to a set of earphones, which he had in his ears. He listened carefully to the pronunciation of each of the Hanzi words, and attempted to replicate them slowly and accurately. "Wǒ ài nǐ..." As he spoke, he also drew a small copy of the symbols into his skin with his nail lightly, just to remind him how it looked. It had been a while since he had had the chance to revisit the language, so he needed to remind himself how it all sounded and looked. He was reminding himself to say _"I love you._ " He thought it might be fun to try and slip that into conversation if he got the chance.

He was engrossed into his revision, he didn't notice Marinette until he felt her finger tapping into his forehead lightly. "My parents wanted me to say thanks for them. You know, for the meal."

"Thanks for going along with it." Adrien said, taking out the earphones and placing his iPad to the side. "Sorry I kinda threw that at you outta nowhere."

"By the school. That was your usual limo to take you home, right?"

"Yeah." Adrien sighed, and looked up at the roof. "I can have everything beaten out of me, and yet he still wouldn't show up in person. Doesn't that show you the kind of person he is?..."

A silent nod was all Mairnette could offer. She still struggled to comprehend that people like Gabriel could be so cold and callous to their own child. Especially one who worked as hard for him as Adrien. "What... Do you think about talking to him?"

"After today? I don't know. That wasn't an invite. That was a demand. He expects me to do as he says." He gave a weak smile towards his girlfriend. "Nothing's changed as far as he's concerned. At least that's _one_ person in Paris who feels that way."

This topic was a depressing one, not just for Adrien, but for Marinette too. Hearing how he was neglected, and was treated by his own father... "...Urm, are your arms feeling better?" She asked, trying to change the topic of the current conversation.

Adrien lifted his arm up and showed it to her. "Not much of a change to be honest. Still feels like hell. How about yours? You feeling any better?"

"Doesn't really hurt anymore." Marinette told him, holding out her arm for him to see. "It didn't hurt that much when I nearly got Akumatized in the first place."

"Does it have something to do with your miraculous?" He had been in a large amount of pain, and neither was sure, nor had a theory, on why Marinette had seemed unaffected by it.

"I don't know... I guess that's possible." Marinette considered, as she ran her fingers on her earrings gently. There was still a lot she didn't know about her magical item, despite being it's wielder.

"Either way... I'm glad you didn't get too badly hurt. But Hawkmoth... Hawkmoth is gonna _pay_ for that." Adrien said, his fist tightening. "We've got to stop him."

Marinette saw how silently angry he really was. To the point it honestly scared her a little. She wasn't used to seeing Adrien like this, utterly furious. She wasn't even used to seeing this level of anger in Chat Noir. At the same time though, it made her happy to see him this angry. He was angry over the safety of her. It made her feel special in a way.

He was like this because he cared about her.

"Hey." She said to him. She held out her fist towards him. The usual signature victory action the two of them shared. Between the two superheroes, it was a sign of the bond and resolve both of them shared to stopping Akuma and protecting Paris. "We're the cat and bug team, aren't we? We'll stop him."

"I thought we were the _bug and cat_ team?" Adrien asked with a smile. Marinette, or rather, Ladybug had always reminded him of that whenever he made that particular ' _Mistake_.'

"I'm feeling generous... For the time being." That confident and smooth tone, part of her Ladybug persona slipping through the always widening cracks between her and Ladybug herself. The more Adrien was around Marinette, the more of her ladybug persona seemed to come out.

"How kind of you." Adrien smiled, tapping her fist with his own.

* * *

Despite everything that happened to him, Adrien still loved the mobile freedom of being Chat Noir. The next day, he and Ladybug had set off on their normal patrols, speeding around the ancient city, with its layers of history and dense population.

The young hero loved being able to traverse the city with ease and total freedom of movement, and he liked to show off the various acrobatic feats he could accomplish as the cat themed hero, performing multiple front flips, backflips and anything in between. The revelation of his identity hadn't stopped him enjoying the time he did spend as Chat Noir.

The duo had done about two thirds of their usual lap around the city before they came to take a brief break atop a 13th century roof, reinforced and held up by renovation and care. The building they stood upon was a piece of history. Preserved through the years by caring hands. At the street line, was a café, with unsuspecting civilians enjoying a warm, caffeinated drink to help get them through the difficulties of work and daily life.

"You feel like stopping for a coffee?" Chat Noir asked with a humour in his tone. "Imagine that. The two heroes of Paris, one of whom everyone knows, just stopping at their local café for a nice latte."

The image brought a smile to Ladybug's face also. "We start going as regulars. They give us a loyalty card as well."

Chat straight up laughed. "That would definitely add to their business, huh? Come one, come all, and get a chance to see the superheroes of Paris!"

Ladybug smiled at the cat themed superhero, whom seemed to be fairly happy with himself at the jokes he had been making. "You're in high spirits."

"I have to be. Helps me forget about everything." Chat said with his smile still intact. He leaped up and, performing a forward backflip in mid air, landed perfectly on the edge of the building's chimney. "I gotta get my fun in where I can, m'lady."

"Whatever you say, Kitty." Ladybug did wonder, would Adrien be like this had he not been raised in such a stern, harsh manner? Did he keep that particular level of reservation even now the world knew he was Chat, simply because he couldn't hide it? Behind the mask, he could certainly be rowdy. Without the mask, he went back to being reserved. Why was that? Or was she overthinking things?

She contemplated as the two of them took their break, and she took in the sights of the city. Right now they were in a rather historically preserved area, relatively close to the Bastille's ruins. As Marinette, she didn't mind learning about history, and Paris was certainly full of that. She would often visit them while brainstorming ideas for her fashion work. The sky was clear and the weather, warm enough to make being outside comfortable, but cool enough that she and Chat weren't boiling inside of their full body costumes.

In the quiet moments like this, she liked to think about the future, what would be in store for her. She liked to think that maybe in a decade or so, she'd be able to design her own clothing line, and be able to live somewhat comfortably that way. That she'd be able to live in a nice, reasonable house, without too many worries on her mind.

She also liked to think Adrien would still be there with her. Happy. Smiling. Maybe modelling her designs if he felt comfortable doing that, of his own choice, of course.

She'd fallen for her boyfriend. She really had fallen in love with him, completely and utterly fallen for him. When she thought about it now, it had long since surpassed the crush stages and became deep love in the meantime. She remembered how it all happened.

And how she didn't regret a second of it now.

"You rested up, Bugaboo?" Chat asked, tapping on his knee, signifying he was ready to carry on the patrol.

Ladybug nodded and went to join him.

Until she felt a tug on her leg, and suddenly found herself flying through the air, away from Chat.

"What the?!" She yelled aloud, barely able to figure out which was was up and which was down, spinning out of control. Before she knew what was happening to her, she felt another tug, this time at her back, dragging her alone in the air. The wind pressure was too great for her to move her arms or use her yoyo. She found herself being carried.

By a walking behemoth.

"Ladybug!" She heard Chat yelled, and saw him darting towards her. He was already in the air, shooting at her as quickly as he could manage. He had used his extendable pole and propelled himself as quickly as he would go into the sky after the two of them.

He came close to grabbing his lady's hand, but was suddenly kicked by a heavy hitter, the one holding Ladybug with a steel grip, slamming him into the side of a building.

"Chat!" Ladybug called out, and struggled, desperate to get out of the grip of whatever the hell this was to see if her love was okay.

"Quit squirming." The figure told her, pushing her underneath his arm and squeezing her betwixt his body-builder-level muscular arm and ribcage, nearly cracking the ribs of her own. "There'll be plenty of time for you to squirm later, girl."

"Get off of me!"

"How rude. My name is Rampage. And yours is... Ladybug. For now."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The first facial expression Ladybug saw appeared on this man, this clearly Akumatized individuals face. He was like a monster out a comic book. "I'm talking about under that pretty mask of yours, girlie. Makes a nice fashion statement... But I'm afraid it's gotta go."

* * *

Chat staggered to his feet, a small crowd of people surrounding him. The impact of the kick hadn't been light. He felt like he'd been hit by a crane. He felt dizzy, the impact having thrown off his balance senses. But he refused to focus on that.

Where was she?

Where did she go?

He looked, desperately trying to find her.

Nowhere.

She was gone. Nowhere to be seen. In the space of time he had needed to recover, she had been taken away. Gone.

His teeth gritted. How had he lost her so easily? How the hell did he have the guts to call himself a hero, never mind her boyfriend?

"Ladybug!"

* * *

 **Que Dr. Who music. I hope you enjoyed!**

 **So, what this story has made me realize is, there's a lot more Miraculous work I need to write. I wanna write a lot more for you guys before the summer ends and I lose a lot of my free time, so I'm gonna be trying to pump these out like crazy for you all.**

 **This story has its plans and will reach a conclusion soon, my friends. I have the next few chapters planned out and ready for writing. All I need now is the ability to not need sleep. I'd also like to say, you guys are awesome. The feedback, the responses, the reviews and comments, it's all been wonderful. You guys make this story worth writing, and I'll be making plenty more once it's done.**

 **For more, you can find me on my Wattpad, GamingEmpire, for slightly earlier updates, and more interactivity.**

 **You can also find me on YouTube, where we have lots of fun mocking various individuals and mugging them. No I'm not kidding.**

 **You can also find my Tumblr for updates and my venting thoughts, GamingEmpire.**

 **Links to all my accounts are in my profile, and I'll be seeing you in the next chapter of whatever I decide to write next. See ya guys!**


	16. A Rampaging Mystery

Her head was spinning. that was all Ladybug knew in that moment when she woke up. Her head felt like it had been caved in with a sledgehammer for all the pain she was in, although remarkably, she wasn't bleeding. Her miraculous shielded her from the vast majority of the pain, which was very good, because otherwise, she would be totally unable to even move without sending a jolt of pain throughout her brain and body.

In spite of the throbbing headache she had received, she looked around... And found herself unable to move. She tugged at her arms with all her might, to no avail. She had been tied down using some disturbingly strong materials, such as a lamp-post around her arm. She had to bite her own tongue to remind herself to remain calm. The inability to move always panicked the young heroine. She needed to be able to move. Restricted movement always panicked her.

Around each one of her limbs was a metallic object of some sort, pinning her into a board. One part of it looked like it came from a car door. Another looked like it came from a window frame. Wherever this had all come from, it had been wedged in deeply, but there were loose areas. If only she had a single hand free, she could probably work her way out of here...

She was located in Paris. That much was obvious. She was nowhere near the Bastille anymore though. She had no idea where exactly she was, but she was overlooking a compound of some sort, so it was safe to guess she was on the outskirts of the city. Her inability to move both frustrated and angered her, resulting in her attempting to squirm free, despite knowing it was impossible. Loud metallic rattles could be heard as she did so, followed by a loud clank. For a second, Ladybug thought she had broken one of her restraints. that was, until, she saw the lumbering, shadowy figure next to her.

"Good to see you're awake."

Rampage was essentially a walking, breathing pile of muscles. Each part of his body had been amplified to the absolute limits of human capability, leaving him with a build that made him look like a living concrete slab. It was clear to Ladybug that before he had been Akumatized, whoever this person had been before that moment, had been someone who had taken pride in their impressive physique.

The Akumatization however, obviously enhanced that to the absolute maximum. To inhumane levels. The power he had gained from Hawkmoth was Muscular Augmentation, allowing him to enhance or retract his muscles however he wanted. And clearly, he wanted the sheer raw power of pushing his physical prowess past it's humane limits. Each part of his muscles looked like a watermelon had been applied to his body. They really were that large.

Aside from these clear enhancements, he had his chestnut hair flowing past his grey, bloodshot eyes and reaching his nose with ease, and longer hair at the back, tied up in a ponytail of his own. His, however, was not as neatly kept as Marinette's, or Ladybug's, leaving it completely disheveled at the back, not neatly meeting at a singular point like Ladybug's did. Along with this, she could see veins pressing against his skin on his arms and legs, coloured a lightish blue color. His face was brutish, his teeth always showing, and when he exhales, a small mist of white came from it, like his body temperature was so warm that even a reasonably summer's day heat wasn't comparative to him. Like the outside world was too cold for the heat within his body.

The outfit that covered him was akin to that of a bodybuilder. Around his arms were two rings that resembled gears, coloured dark grey, and he was basically shirtless otherwise, bearing his muscled figure to the world. Around his waist, he wore a pair of shorts, that looked like they had previously been jeans that had been ripped in two, and a cloak around his waist that covered his lower body. Around his waistline, in place of a belt, were a series of weights, each at roughly 2.5 kilograms, according to the writing on the side of them. Around his bulky neck was a chain, and on the end of the chain, was a straight up dumbbell, with apparently up to 6.5 kilograms applied to each side.

That was where the Akuma had to be located. It had to be. It made the most sense. And it radiated energy. The same energy Marinette had felt when she had almost been Akumatized herself.

What Ladybug knew just by looking at him, was that he could probably break her arm like a twig just by leaning on her too much. He stood only a few meters away from her, like he had been watching over her until this moment in which she awoke.

"Where's Chat Noir?" She asked, careful not to let her emotions betray her voice. She forced herself to speak calmly. "What did you do to him?"

"Agreste? I kicked him into a building." The Akumatized villain replied casually, tensing up his muscles once more. "One nice kick to the side and whammo, he went flying! Not particularly sturdy, is he?"

it still distressed Ladybug that villains now knew Adrien's identity. It felt like they were mocking him every time they acknowledged his actual name. It almost felt wrong. She wanted to be the only one to call Chat Noir Adrien. Not the rest of the world. and especially not villains. She just glared at him.

"Something wrong?" The Akumatized victim asked, with a smug smirk on his face. Blue veins were visible around his lips.

For now, she returned her attention to the binds that held her hostage. There didn't seem to be a whole lot of wiggle room for her to work with, leaving her basically at the mercy of Rampage. "So, what are you going to do with me?"

"Well, if it were up to me, I'd have a nice brawl with you." Rampage said with an exhale, more water vapor evaporation occurring as he did so. "But I'm under different orders. I told you the mask had to come off, didn't I? I mean after all, your partner's has come off." He knelt by Ladybug, his face maybe three inches away from hers, a grin forming on his lips. "Doesn't seem fair that yours hasn't does it?"

"You're not just going to take my miraculous?"

"Oh I will, don't worry about that. But I'll do that once I'm good and ready."

That worried Ladybug. Exactly what was this villain planning? What orders was he receiving from Hawkmoth? what deadly instructions was he going to carry out in the name of his master?

It would be a simple matter to just take her miraculous and leave her there.

That was what Hawkmoth wanted, wasn't it?

So what was going on here?

* * *

 _'This is my fault. This is my fault. This is all my damn fault!'_

Chat had gone over the entire city three times, and had found absolutely no trace of Ladybug. He could feel his body being over-exerted, that he had been warned against doing. Additionally, the ick he had received from the Akumatized victim, whoever he was, had felt like solid steel, lodged right underneath his ribcage. the direct impact with the building hadn't helped him either. He could feel his muscles aching, but they could be damned for all he cared.

And now Ladybug was gone.

Marinette was gone.

And he had been unable to do anything to help prevent it.

It was his fault.

He was weak.

He was unable to protect her. He wasn't even able to keep up with the villain who had grabbed her. Some superhero he was. Taken out by _one_ attack. How pathetic he must look. How did Ladybug even see him as a partner before they learned of each other's identity?

He wasn't even a worthy fighter. He wasn't strong enough to protect her. Most of the time, she protected him.

What good was he?

He felt so helpless without her. Without her, he felt so empty, so out of place, so unsure in himself. She was his light in the darkness, and without her, he was lost, unable to see in front of him clearly. His beacon in the night time, and his sunshine in the day time.

She didn't need him.

He needed her. That was the truth here. Without Ladybug, without Marinette... He was just... Nothing. His heightened aggression, his short temper with anyone but her, his protectiveness of her... It was because of his own feelings for her. Just the idea of her being harmed or taken away from him in any way... For the fragile model, it was far too much to bare.

And that's why he refused to give up looking for his lady.

His time limit reached, Adrien dropped to the streets to de-transform. He still found an alleyway to hide in, despite him knowing it was totally pointless. Everyone knew who he was, what different would it have made if he de-transformed in front of people? Old habits died hard for the young model.

"Haaaaaaah... Adrien, I need Camembert..." Plagg complained once he had separated from Adrien. This wasn't out of greed though. Without Camembert, Plagg would be unable to access the powers that he needed to to give Adrien the ability to transform.

"There's gotta be a shop selling some somewhere nearby..." Adrien said to himself, dashing out onto the streets. He got a few looks from people who obviously recognized him. Going out in public was now impossible without someone recognizing him. This time, Adrien paid them absolutely no heed, dashing down the streets in search for a store that sold the very specific cheese that Plagg required.

Adrien's running had, for the most part, improved since he had become Chat Noir. He had far more stamina and strength in his legs from leaping and dashing all over the city day after day, so quickly running through the streets of the busy city wasn't a problem at all. roughly a mile or two of running later, he was able to find a store that sold the food he required. While he offered to pay, it was given to him completely freely by the woman who aided him, claiming to be a fan of his and appreciative of all the hard work he put into protecting the city. While he would have given her far more time on any other day, a quick thanks was all Adrien could offer before dashing out the building again.

"I guess there are some perks from everyone knowing who you are, huh kid?" Plagg commented from Adrien's pocket.

"Shut up and eat, Plagg! We don't have time to waste!"

"I'm eatin', I'm eatin'. Let me savour it at least."

"Plagg, Mar - Ladybug's gone, an Akuma is on the loose, and we have no idea where either of them are! Now is not the time to be savouring food!" Adrien yelled at his Kwami, which got him the attention of a disturbing number of bystanders. the good news was, none of them thought he was insane. the bad news was, a thousand questions were suddenly shot at him, like a machine gun of curiosity and questions all demanding to be answered at once.

He was saved by one of the large bulletin televisions that played in Paris.

He wasn't sure if he would call it being saved though.

Upon the screen, first, came a loud white noise, followed by static, as the channels shifted over into the broadcast that was hijacking the scheduled one. this caused many people to cover their ears before the noise was finished.

Once the image came into sight, the full focus of each street that saw these live feeds was singularly on them.

Ladybug was in a bind - Literally. Metallic objects, variously picked up from different sources as anyone could see, around each of her limbs, preventing her from moving. She looked sweaty, and exhausted - How long had she been trying to escape from this prison she found herself in?

"Mari..." Adrien said quietly to himself, his eyes wide, and his heart thudding against his chest. she looked so distressed, so defeated right now...

This was his fault.

 _'I couldn't stop this.'_

The eerie thing about this footage, was that there was no villain. There was no one other than Ladybug. No one else came into view. People were expecting a villain to come on. To make demands of the city for the young heroine's safe return.

All they saw was Ladybug, struggling to escape.

' _This is my fault._ '

As Adrien watched this, he couldn't figure out why no one was appearing. What was the point of this being shown, if no demands were to be made? Was this some sick, perverted pleasure of the villain this time around?

Or was it...

Adrien's eyes shot wider than he thought possible. His brain just clicked, and he inhaled sharply.

This was a countdown.

Ladybug's time limit would be over soon. Her face, made clear to every single person in Paris.

"Marinette..." Adrien bit his bottom lip, sharply, as he tasted the blood on his lips.

' _This is all my fault. I couldn't stop this. And Now Marinette's in danger._ '

"Where is that located?" Adrien asked aloud, hoping someone would hear. subconsciously, he had asked in a quiet whisper, so it would have been unlikely anyone heard him without being right next to him. When no one even looked at him, he raised his voice. "Does anyone recognize the area she's in?!"

His question turned several people's heads, and the people there all looked at one another, and a low muttering came across the crowd, all asking one another if they recognized where Ladybug was being held. Of course, they all recognized Adrien. Many felt compelled to help.

"I know." One man said, stepping out of the crowd. He was a builder, still in his work clothes, hard hat included. He looked to be in his mid forties.

"Where?!" Adrien asked, practically shouting at the innocent man.

"It's a construction site just to the west of the city. I worked there a year ago. Follow that direction for maybe an hour and thirty minutes or so by walking, and you'll get there no problem."

"It's not even gonna take me a tenth of that." Adrien commented, before rushing off to save his lady. "Thanks!" He yelled back, before commanding Plagg to prepare for a rescue operation.

 _'Why isn't Hawkmoth just taking the miraculous?"_ Adrien thought to himself, as he felt himself becoming Chat Noir once again. ' _This would be the perfect chance to just take them from her... So what's he playing at?... I don't like this...'_

Leaping into the air, and dashing towards his target as quickly as he could, Chat's teeth showed.

 _'I'll save you, Marinette. Don't worry!'_

* * *

 **I shall never tired of cliffhangers ^_^**

 **So, it turns out writing on a keyboard is a lot quicker than writing on an iPad... Who'd have guessed? The chapter may be shorter, but I read somewhere that longer chapters can be less impactful to the story... So I'm gonna try this method. Honestly, I probably would have gotten the same amount of plot progression done... But I'd have filled it up with lots of description. Lets see how this method goes.**

 **Also, guys, Chat Out Of The Bag _will_ be ending soon. I feel like I've gone as far as I can go with the plot I have planned out. I've learned a lot from this story, and I'm already looking forward to my next Miraculous story, which will, I know, be far better than this one. There will be more fluff, more romance, more chapters, hopefully, and with luck, more of you guys to tag along! **

**For more from me, you can visit my Wattpad, GamingEmpire, for slightly earlier updates, and more interactivity with you all**

 **You can also go subscribe to my YouTube, where I mock everyone and everything that dares exist near me.**

 **Also, you can follow me on Tumblr, GamingEmpire, for previews and bloggy type things.**

 **Links to all my various media is in the profile description of my account, and I hope you enjoyed, and as always, I will see you in, whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	17. Almost Losing You

Chat Noir had no real idea if he had made it to the construction site in time to prevent Ladybug's identity from becoming public Parisian domain. Thanks to the massive speed increase his miraculous always gave him, and the ability to avoid traffic thanks to leaping over rooftops, it only took him roughly ten minutes, but he still couldn't be sure that that was short enough. He had never wished for the power to teleport more in his life.

He couldn't even begin to imagine the backlash Ladybug would suffer if her identity was revealed. Marinette Dupain Cheng. The person whom everyone had heard was dating Adrien Agreste, Chat Noir, out of their own desires to not hide who they were despite Adrien having to wear a mask. The person who already received a lot of flack from people who hid behind monitors. The person who... Who he loved...

Adrien had received attention he had never wanted. His life had been shaken. Shattered. Never to be the same as it was before all of this happened. All because of his identity being showcased to everyone in Paris. But he was fine. He was upset about it, but it wasn't something he couldn't survive. As a model, famous and well known throughout the country, he was used to that sort of attention wherever he went.

But Marinette... She saw what happened when she was Ladybug. When she was a heroine. When she had saved the day. She saw the sort of frenzy people got themselves into... But it was so different when it was your alter ego. If they found out who she was underneath that polka dotted mask...

He wouldn't let that happen to Marinette. He couldn't. He'd never forgive himself if he let her down like that.

He overlooked the compound, and began to plan his next move. There was nothing he wanted to do more, absolutely nothing, than to dash in there and see if Ladybug was okay. He wanted nothing more than that. To make sure the love of his life was safe and sound...

But going in recklessly like that was foolish. Stupid even. He may confirm his loves safety, but he could run right into a trap. But if he didn't run in now, Ladybug's time could run out. But if he got caught, then it wouldn't matter anyway. Every action he could take had a negative to it. Had a downside he couldn't account for. Each choice had a dire consequence that could change the fate of Paris dramatically. He had to choose correctly.

"Please, hang on just a little longer..." He said silently to Ladybug, to Marinette. He felt himself tremble in a fear of what would happen should he fail. He had to do this correctly. Despite the enormous pressure placed upon the young heroes shoulders, he forced himself to scout the courtyard first. To search for his opponent. To search for Ladybug from afar. To see if there was anything in the environment that could give him an advantage. Anything.

As he leapt from roof to roof, like a ninja, he tried to get some sort of visual on his beloved girl. It was worrying to him. All he could think about was just how much he loved the girl he was trying to save. How much she meant to him. How alive and worthwhile she made him feel. How concerned he was for her safety.

"Pay attention!"

Reflexes that he didn't know existed activated instantly, and his body moved on its own, leaping off the roof before it was covered in a bellowing, shattering smoke from a heavy, powerful punch. It had been a mere few seconds before the punch commented that Chat's reflexes shot into motion. Had they not, he would have certainly been crushed by the sheer power of that attack. As the cat was thrown into the air, he saw the villain, Rampage. The one who took his love from him, and by the looks of things, his opponent.

The black, cat themed hero landed on the ground with a loud thud, failing to land on his feet due to his lack of preparation time. He felt like several sharp rocks jabbed into his back, but he couldn't feel any blood. The miraculous he wore limited the pain he felt, but it still stung underneath his suit. Using the claws on his hands, he jammed them into the dusty, dry earth, letting his skidding come to an end, leaving a dust trail in front of him as he dug into the ground.

"Chat!"

Recognising that sweet, angelic voice, the young man turned his head roughly a hundred degrees to the left, and about thirty degrees up. Though she was still pinned down, helpless and in danger, there she was, unharmed.

"Ladybug!" He called back to her. Her miraculous hadn't worn off... He sighed loudly. He hadn't been too late. At least not yet. There was still time to help her!

The two of them stared at one another for a short moment, just embracing the feeling of being happy to see one another. Though it had only been a few hours, for the drama the two teenagers had gone through today, it felt like a week. Had he not been in such a dire situation, Chat would have probably shed tears of joy.

All in all, it probably wasn't Chat's greatest plan.

"Rraaargh!" A shake in the ground, and suddenly, the villain, Rampage was shooting at Chat, bursting though the cloud of dust Chat had thrown up with his handing, and landing a clean, solid strike in Chat's stomach. The impact of such a blunt force strike caused the teenager to cough up blood, before being sent flying due to the force of the impact into a wall right behind him. It happened in the space of roughly five seconds.

A trail of blood running from his mouth, Chat looked up, baring his teeth, glaring at Rampage. He shifted his glance between the bulking monster he had to fight, and his lady, whom looked at him with the same worried look he was giving her. He had to help her. Even if only a little. She was resourceful, but she needed mobility. He just had to help her get free.

"Chat! This Akuma has Muscle Augmentation! He can enhance any of his muscles!" She yelled at him, passing on what little information she could about him. "His Akuma is in the dumbbell around his neck!"

"Where's the camera?" Chat Noir asked, staggering to his feet, and getting ready to make his move. He kept his balance upright by leaning on the wall with his left hand for a moment, while he recovered his ability to stand upright.

"It's just across from me! I'm looking at it now!"

"Focus on your opponent, hero!" The Akuma yelled at Chat, charging at him again.

This time, the superhero was ready for it. Using his extending staff as quickly as he could, Chat Noir shot past his opponent, and made his way to his lady. if he could at least destroy the camera, he could stop all of Paris from learning who Ladybug really was.

He landed by his lady, and took just a single second to remind himself just how fortunate he was to have gotten here in time. Before he let himself get distracted to badly though, he scanned in front of her, seeing what was being used as a camera. Basically, it was nothing short of just a smart-phone. Much easier to break than a full camera set.

Deciding the secret identity of Ladybug was more important than getting her out in just that split second, Chat Noir began to swing with his staff, aiming to crush the smart-phone into a thousand pieces before time was up. However, he felt a blunt, yet sharp pain suddenly, hitting him in the side of his face, and flinging him next to Ladybug. He felt the cold metallic sheet metal behind him, and heard a loud iron clang as he landed. Rampage had caught up with him in such a short space of time, using his powers to boost the strength in his legs, which apparently gave him enhanced speed as well as strength.

Another punch was launched at Chat, but this time, he rolled over to the left, missing it by a whisker. Another one came at him, and once again he dodged. When the third one came at him, he ducked, and skidded underneath Rampage's wide-legged stance, allowing him to get behind the Akumatized victim. Brandishing his claws, Chat jumped onto Rampages back, digging his sharp finger ends into his back muscles, hoping to restrain him in some way. Unfortunately, this didn't work, and he was thrown off with relative ease. He wasn't even sure if his claws managed to pierce the skin.

 _Beep beep beep beep..._

Hearing that sickening sound, the sound of a miraculous about to go off, alarmed Chat. He was out of time. Ladybug was about to de-transform.

"Chat! Look out!" Ladybug yelled at him, warning him of an impending attack.

Rampage tossed another right hook at Chat, which he managed to scurry away from, another left hook, and then a right jab, all of which required Chat to fully utilize his strength and reflexes. worn down by battle fatigue, Chat's breathing had increased dramatically, his arms and feet aching. But he refused to slow down.

When he came up with his on the fly plan, he knew this would result in him getting at least one serious strike to the head that could easily hospitalize him.

 _'Screw it.'_ He thought. Ladybug's secret was far more valuable to him than his body.

Rampage was in the way, first of all, defending that camera. He was presumably being guided by Hawkmoth to defend it, for whatever reason he had. To get to the camera, to save Ladybug's identity, he needed to get behind Rampage, if only for a second. And that included a fight with him to get around him. With only, by his own count, a minute left, Chat charged at the bulking behemoth, swinging a left-reverse punch at the Akuma.

Rampage also launched a left hook, but with his far bulkier arm, Chat knew that this was a bad call. This would result in a broken arm, and Chat knew this. At the last second he could manage, Chat feigned his move, pulling it back and using the opportunity to roll underneath the lumbering warriors body. While Rampage had amazingly powerful muscles, they also limited his flexibility, giving him a lot of weak spots.

 _Beep beep beep beep beeeeep..._

With the last second he had, Chat threw himself in front of the smart-phone, just as Ladybug's miraculous faded away. Without letting a single person even get so much as a glimpse of what was behind him, he threw the phone to the ground, and stamped on it three times, ensuring it's total destruction. it all happened so quickly, the details were lost to Chat, who was focusing only on the moment.

He had done it. He had saved Ladybug's identity from revelation. He had come so close to failure, to losing this fight and losing Marinette... But he had done it.

He would have taken a sigh of relief if that punch to the face he had been expecting hadn't arrived, slamming him once again, next to Ladybug. By now, the repeated strikes to the side of his face had ripped open his skin, and left him covered in a series of unattractive bruises.

"Damn you!" Rampage screamed, firing off another volley of punched.

"Cataclysm!" Activating his most powerful destructive ability, Chat Noir pushed off the metal sheet behind him, and slammed his open palm into the dumbbell. the truth was, he had hit the dumbbell entirely by accident. Adrenaline had pumped throughout his veins, and told him to strike back, regardless of the consequences. He was truly just amazingly lucky had had managed to actually hit the Akumatized object, or he could have seriously been looking at the prospect of becoming a murderer.

Rampage seemed to stagger backwards after the impactful strike, and watched, seemingly trying to clutch and piece back together, his rapidly disintegrating dumbbell. It practically melted in his hands, piece by piece, until the evil Akuma flew away, out of his weights and into the sky.

Chat managed to help the now transformed Marinette out of her enclosure, ripping off a piece of loose metal from her left arm. She was able to remove the rest herself, quickly ripping herself free from the prison she had found herself in. "Tikki, are you recharged?"

"I'm eating as fast as I can!" The small Kwami replied, with a mouthful of crumbs from the cookie it had apparently run into Marinette's bag to eat.

De-transforming back into Adrien, the young model had Plagg do a similar task, only with a piece of Camembert he had kept as a back up. As the two Kwami ate, Adrien allowed himself to take a breath. "I really thought I'd failed you for a while..."

"I knew you'd help me." Marinette reassured him with a smile. She had never lost her faith in him.

"I wasn't." The blond model admitted. The truth was, he really was just lucky today. He had saved her, but it had been down to nothing but luck. He was lucky he had managed to find out where she was being held. He was lucky he had managed to avoid those hits by Rampage. He was lucky... Just lucky.

But that had to end today.

"Marinette..." he said, solemnly. He spoke like he had just died for a second. Emotion in his voice abruptly stopped, like he had been shot. "I don't want you to purify that Akuma."

"What?! Why?!" The blunette asked in utter confusion.

"This has gone on too long. Every day we have to wonder what the hell this lunatic is gonna do next. These attacks... They're not enough anymore. Each Akuma he makes gets stronger, and every time, more people get hurt, us included. He nearly killed me a few weeks ago, and he nearly ruined your life just now. Whatever he's doing, Hawkmoth is too dangerous now. He's too unpredictable. We... We can't just combat his Akuma as they come anymore."

"Adrien?..."

"We have to take him down. Now. Today. Before this happens again."

His logic was sound. His reasoning was sound. That could not be denied. Marinette agreed with him, that Hawkmoth was too unpredictable now, and they had to speed up their search for who he really was underneath the mask he wore... But his planning skills left much to be desired as far as the blunette was concerned. "We've been looking for him for over a year! How do you expect to find him just like that?"

"The way we should have done the first time we saw an Akuma." Adrien told her cryptically. He pointed at the fiendish Akuma, fluttering away, already a dot in the sky, retreating back to Paris. "We follow the servant to his master."

"Adrien, you're pretty beat up! We can't take him on right now. I - "

"Marinette... I came this close to losing you today. As soon as the mask comes off, it's not Ladybug that takes the hits. It's Marinette. Just ask me. just ask Chat Noir... If that happened to you... " Adrien had started with snapping at her, but by the end of it, he was softly spoken, almost like he was becoming timid as he spoke. "Marinette... I can't let anything happen to you... I can't take that... I can't..."

He wanted to guarentee her safety. That what this was all about. He wanted to guarentee that she wouldn't ever be harmed, physically, or socially, like he had been, over and over again. He blamed himself for her capture. He blamed himself for being too weak. He blamed himself for... A lot of things.

That's what Marinette figured out in that moment.

Even if they wanted to chase down the Akuma now, it had already vanished. Instead, Marinette comforted a distraught Adrien. It was too late to purify the Akuma by the time Tikki was ready anyway.

* * *

 **This chapter in particular went under several drafts. the original one ended with them going off to fight Hawkmoth. Now I'm not sure what they're doing. I don't like acting on unconfirmed information.**

 **This story does have an end point, and it will be coming up rather soon. I'm working to get this story finished by Thursday if I can. there may even be another chapter finished by today. Who knows? Not I. Who has some ideas they'd like to see? I know I'm in need of some.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter regardless guys! I'm already planning my next Miraculous story, and I wanna make it so much better than this. Trust me, I'll make it amazing for you all ^_^**

 **You can find more from me on my Wattpad, where you can get slightly earlier updates.**

 **My Youtube is also available for you, where I'm bringing back a horror game of utter mental scarring.**

 **My Tumblr, GamingEmpire, is also free for you guys to check out, for all your blogging needs.**

 **Links to each of these is in the profile description, and I'll be seeing you all in the next chapter, of whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to make next. See ya!**


	18. What Comes Next

"Hey, Kitty?"

"Yeah, Mari?"

"What would you do if I disappeared?"

It had been a few days since Marinette's kidnapping, and Adrien had wanted to go after Hawkmoth. Since then, no Akuma attacks had occurred, and crime had been low, leaving Chat Noir and Ladybug rather task-less. They had begun their own small investigation, consulting what little information they had on the villain and tips and hints about who Hawkmoth was. Marinette's room was an utter mess most of the time thanks to this particular study. They were able to say it was for a school project, so Marinette's parents were never suspicious of what they were doing.

Adrien had been reading through some of their custom made profiles about Akumatized victims, with opponents such as Lady WiFi, Bubbler, and the rest they had fought. Each biography had the victims civilian name, their villain name, list of abilities, and what left them open to being Akumatized. Of course, the final bit of information only was added if they happened if they happened to know. Once he heard Marinette's question, he paused for a second, before putting the papers down and looking at her, not sure if she was trying to imply something. "In what context?"

Marinette smiled softly and looked out her window. Above the city was a beautiful blue sky. "I don't know... I just had the thought, you know? So, I just wanted to know..."

"I mean, like, what do you mean though? As in, you moving away?"

"Well, I mean, that's one way to look at it I guess. But that isn't what I was thinking."

"Well, in that situation, I'd probably run after you." Adrien replied with a smirk. He probably would. Almost certainly, actually. He wasn't too sure what he'd do if she moved.

Marinette smiled back at him. It was a reassuring answer to hear, though she doubted that her parents would suggest moving away, especially now they knew about Adrien. That was also reassuring.

There was a far darker, far more brutal, and terrifyingly real reason she was asking.

Hawkmoth was dangerous. A criminal. A villain. The villain responsible for everything that had happened to them. Ruthless and heartless, he was simply power hungry. Destruction across Paris. Abduction, assault, a long list of crimes. He was the reason the whole world knew Adrien Agreste was Chat Noir, and was close to telling the world Marinette-Dupain-Cheng was Ladybug. He had also become unpredictable, and now, Marinette wasn't sure what he wanted from them. Was he still after their miraculous? Or did he just straight up want to ruin their lives? Or had his distaste for them reach some sort of singularity, that he just wanted them gone for good?

There was a very real chance that if they found him, and engaged him in a fight, one of them would die. The chances of that were very, very real.

She was hesitant to even bring up the possibility with Adrien. the idea of discussing one of them dying was too painful to think about, never mind discuss with him. They had been together for a few weeks now. They were used to one another. they had done plenty, and fought alongside one another for even longer. There shouldn't be any hesitation between the two of them.

That was the mentality Marinette thought she had. Instead she realized that, all that aside, they were two teenagers who were hopelessly in love with each other. The mere concept of the other disappearing just did not register in the others brain at all. the mere idea now, of imagining her life without Adrien.. Her own brain simply didn't compute it. It just wasn't possible. Not even as some sort of overly dramatic scenario that Marinette's mind would often come up with when she was in a panic. The idea simply would not happen with her.

And she knew Adrien felt the same way.

"That's... Good to know, Adrien. Really. It is..."

"But?" Adrien asked, raising an eyebrow at his girlfriend. He knew there was more she wanted to say."

"I meant... If... When we find Hawkmoth..." Marinette bit her thumb, not sure how to phrase it. She didn't want to bluntly state that there was the possibility of one of them being killed. Adrien already wanted their fight with Hawkmoth over as it was, all for her sake. She didn't want to make Adrien upset, or make him panic at the possibility of one of them dying. "I mean... What if one of us... Can't come back?"

"Not gonna happen." Adrien told her firmly. He didn't even hesitate. "I am not gonna let anything happen to you."

It slightly shook the blunette girl how firm he had stated that. It was like he had already considered it, and didn't even want to hear an opposing possibility. considering thing though, she couldn't blame him for not wanting to even hear it. "You can't guarentee that, Adrien..."

"Yes I can." He said to her, this time, even firmer. Like he was stating pure, cold, hard facts that he expected her to accept. "Marinette, you asked what I'd do if your disappeared... This is what you meant, right?"

Marinette nodded.

"In that case, one of two things will happen. Either I disappear, or we both do." His eyes met with hers, unblinking, and she could see the truth and conviction he said with each word. It shocked her just how readily, how easily he was able to say something like that. It translated to that he would give his life for hers, or let himself die should she die. So dedicated was this blond model to this blunette amateur fashion designer, he was prepared to lay down his own life to protect her. "Marinette, without you here, I really don't have anything to be here for. You're Marinette. You're Ladybug. You're the person who has kept me going for the last year, weather you knew it or not. You're the one who kept me going. So if you go, I go."

Hearing those words made her happy... They did... But... "No..." She quietly said to him. "No... You can't... Disappear, even if I do..." She said with a lowered head, staring at the wooden textures in her floor. A world without Adrien... It wasn't comprehensible.

"Then make sure you don't." Adrien told her with warmth.

His words cheering her up a bit, she returned them back to him. "Then make sure _you_ don't."

"That's all the motivation I need, M'lady."

She allowed herself to lean onto his shoulder, and eventually managed to make her way to resting her head on his lap, despite him keeping a large stack of papers there. She just pushed them off though. He was too warm for her to care about the paper thrown around her room. Adrien didn't seem to mind as she made herself comfortable. "What do you think we'll do once Hawkmoth is gone?"

The teenage blond considered for a few moments. "I guess we'll keep protecting Paris like we've always done."

"Do you think Paris will still need us though?..."

"Maybe not. But they'll still have us."

"I don't want to give up being Ladybug..." Marinette confessed. "there are times I wish I'd never become Ladybug... But now that i have been... I don't want to let go of my miraculous. Being Ladybug has been a huge part of me for such a long time..."

"I know what you mean, Mari." Adrien assured her, running his fingers through her silky, blue hair. "If I'd not been Chat Noir, i'd probably have gone insane by now. And I may never have gotten to meet you and fall in love with you twice over, Bugaboo." Feeling his hands run through her hair helped Marinette to relax, and she closed her eyes and sighed happily. "I don't want to give up being Chat Noir either."

"Then we won't have to, will we? We'll keep protecting Paris, like we always have, remember?" Marinette reminded him.

A small noise of amusement came from Adrien. Hadn't she been the one to ask about this originally? She had certainly changed her thoughts about the matter quickly. Still, he had to agree with her. "Right."

* * *

Gabriel Agreste walked silently in his sons room. He hadn't been in here in weeks. Adrien hadn't been in here in all that time either. Stepping into the room felt almost alien for the fashion designer. The last time he had even entered this room had been after Chat Noir - Adrien, he reminded himself, bitterly - and Ladybug fought Simon Says. What a mistake, he thought, to have Akumatized someone like him.

He hadn't exactly had a lot of targets to chose from, though. And his power was indeed extraordinary. But he had placed himself at risk. A foolish risk, no matter how you looked at it.

Calmly, the Parisian adult walked across to his sons bed. Neatly made, as per usual. He then made his way to the bookshelves. Perfectly neat, lined up perfectly, and everything categorized. As he had taught Adrien to do. Next, he made his way to the computer. Desk completely clear. A surge of curiosity lead to him turning on the system. He was greeted by a wallpaper of Ladybug. Somehow, this didn't even surprise him at this point.

His own son was chat Noir.

 _'Absolutely God damn perfect._ ' He thought to himself, sarcasm dripping in his own thinking.

Gabriel felt a sudden violent swelling, and, in a fit of unusual rage, breaking his normally typically calm demeanor, he grabbed Adrien's computer monitor and threw it across the room with force. "Accursed Ladybug!" He screamed aloud. He was fortunate that all the rooms in his house were soundproof. He would have certainly been heard if not.

How the hell had this happened?! His own son, his flesh and blood, Adrien, was his enemy, Chat Noir?! How had this occurred? How had Adrien even come into possession of a miraculous?!

He had thought this weeks ago, when he caught a glimpse of his son, battered and nearly dead thanks to his own Akumatized creation Overgrow, live broadcast to the entire country. His Public Relations team couldn't cover that up if they tried!

Every fight they had had, every attack, every strike, every Akuma, every plot all came back to the abnormally angry man. It had been his own son defying him? The one he had made every effort to make sure was subservient? The only child he had!

The one he was _doing_ all this _for_!

Adrien leaving Gabriel had always been the biggest fear the cold man had. Like his life had left. He knew nothing about where she was. He didn't even know she was going until she was gone. How angry he had been. How upset he had been. How depressed he had been. He had tried to stop that happening as much as he could. He had showered his son with any possession he wanted. He had gone to every effort to make sure Adrien interacted with only a select group of individuals he could trust, ones who would not steer him away from his father.

And thanks to the parasite that was Ladybug, it had all been for nothing.

Relaxing as quickly as he had angered, Gabriel calmed himself. "Clean up. Adrien's room. He must have broke a monitor when he left." He spoke into a smartphone he carried, informing any employees he had left in his house of the monitor he had broken. A trivial concern. He could buy another one within the hour if he so willed it.

He had thought that revealing who Ladybug was would demoralize Adrien, make him become disillusioned with her. That had been his original plan. That was until he had seen how that blue haired girl - Marie? Whatever her name was - Had been able to resist his Akuma. And that was the girl Adrien had claimed to be his girlfriend...

He shuddered at the thought. He had strictly forbidden Adrien from having someone like that. Not without his consent.

But logic said it made sense. Adrien had fought his Akuma. That had been a shame. He could have used the loyalty Blank would have had to Hawkmoth to make his son return to him. but it had been a necessary experiment. Even if it had been against his own son.

And he had gotten Ladybug's identity out of it. He was sure of it.

So why had he even bothered with Rampage?

Retribution. If you cross Gabriel Agreste - _Hawkmoth_ \- then prepare to face the consequences. He wanted Ladybug's life in shambles. One of the pettiest actions he had every committed as Hawkmoth, he knew. but he was still bitter about the failure of the mission.

He would bring back his wife. He would bring back Adrien.

By force if need be.

"Nathalie."Gabriel said, speaking once again into his smartphone. As usual, he made his voice calm, cold and collected. His voice demanded obedience. Just hearing him told you not to piss him off. It would not go well. and It never did. "Prepare a car. We are taking a trip to Adrien's school."

* * *

Definitely not how I expected to be dealing with Hawkmoth, but I'm sort of glad it ended up this way. The story is going into it's last stretches, and while I know it's cliche to end after defeating Hawkmoth... That's exactly why I WON'T Be doing that, there will still be some more work to come after the battle. Of course, that's assuming they do actually win. I might take this darker.

Or will I? Woooo, spoooooookey! Mysteryyyyyyyyyyyyy!

I have no idea what I'm even doing at this point.

You can find more from me on my Wattpad, for more stories, and a slightly earlier update scheduled. Everything is updated there first.

You can also come and watch me on YouTube. Anime videos are on their way. Miraculous will definitely be making an appearance, and I'll be talking about why it's a great show and what I see in the future... As well as my annoyances by it. Otherwise, games happen there.

And you can follow me on Tumblr, if you need me for blogging reasons. Also taking ideas and suggestions for my next Miraculous story. Already have an outlined concept thanks to you guys! Lets make this one our story, not just my work.

And i will see you in whatever it is that i do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!


	19. A Disturbing Theory

Since the two of them had become established as a couple, Adrien and Marinette often seemed to be in a world of their own. The two of them spent a large amount, if not all of their time together, and they always looked so happy, so relaxed with one another, that they were easily the envy of most people in their entire school. If they hadn't got looks for Adrien being Chat Noir, they would have definitely gotten looks for the way they interacted so lovingly.

They spent time apart, of course. They interacted with their other classmates as they normally would, or what had become normal for them. Many times their conversations took a turn towards Adrien's superhero actions. Not always, but often enough for Adrien's liking. He didn't dislike answering those questions... But there really wasn't a lot to tell them without revealing secrets he couldn't share with his classmates.

He was covered in a small series of blue bruises and crimson cuts. They were clearly from his work as Chat Noir. He wasn't able to hide those well. They were deep, particularly the ones from Rampage. They wouldn't disappear for a few weeks. Thankfully the majority of them weren't on his face, so he was able to mostly hide them.

Chloe still wasn't acting as her normal self. She remained silent most of the time, barely even acknowledging anyone else. While this translated as the rest of the class having practically the most relaxed and stress free few weeks in recent memory, Adrien had known Chloe his entire life. He felt somewhat concerned for her. Never had he seen her acting reserved like this. he had bigger things to worry about, but there was an odd part of him that wanted to make sure she was okay.

Today was a big day for Adrien. Ever since Rampage had attacked and kidnapped Ladybug. and Adrien had destroyed the smartphone that had been used in place of a camera, the young blond had been trying to find a way to repair said phone. Interrogating the victim, the citizen who was Akumatized to become Rampage, revealed that it wasn't actually the bodybuilder's phone, that it had been delivered to him shortly after his transformation. Meaning it had come from Hawkmoth directly. Adrien thought that if he was able to access any information from it, it could help him and his lady track down Hawkmoth.

And then they could finally end this craziness.

It was a big day because Adrien had received a text from the gadgets shop he had taken the phone to be repaired. Despite the extensive damage Chat Noir had caused to it, he had been assured that repairing the phone would be a simple matter. Hope had flared throughout the teenagers body once he heard those words. Within a few hours, the information to end all of this could be in the palm of his hands.

The day was Thursday, meaning they had a session of double Science. Adrien understood all of the various sciences quite well, bar Physics, his weakest of all the Sciences. He understood it all rather well, but he struggled with it in comparison to the others. He sat in his class with his head in his hand, bored out of his mind, and barely even focused.

"Upon the falling object reaching terminal velocity, the graph of speed and gravitational energy becomes even, and constant. For an object like, for sake of example, a bowling ball, this cannot increase. However, for a human, this can change. Can anyone tell me why this is?" Ms. Mendeleiev questioned her class. she always sounded like she wasn't even asking. More like she expected someone to shoot their hand up and answer without hesitation.

In that regard, at least, Adrien liked her. She was one of the few teachers who didn't particularly treat him any differently despite knowing of his alternate identity, which was what he had asked for. She seemed to be the only person in the school who complied with that. then again, she might be enjoying the opportunity to have authority over a superhero. "Adrien?" She seemed to call his name out a lot.

With a reluctant sigh, Adrien gave his answer. "Human's can change their shape, thus lowering wind resistance, and increasing terminal velocity."

"Excellent."

To be honest, Adrien couldn't care less about his school work right now, and this was one of the exceedingly rare times he ever thought along those lines. He wanted to get his hands on that phone. to search through it, to see if he could get a glimpse at the identity of the villain who caused so much trouble for him and Marinette. His mind was flooding with the possibility of gaining knowledge on his foe.

He did his work as he normally did, until he heard the lunch bell. As everyone made their way to do various things with their break, Adrien shot up and, after a brief stretch, stood up to exit his seat.

"Do you want me to come with you, Adrien?" Marinette asked from behind him. she knew of his arrangements. He was going to the store to pick up the phone during the lunch break. He had said he wanted to go alone, to check through it on his own. He had declared that he was hunting Hawkmoth. He didn't even really want Marinette involved. And that aside, something simply compelled him to do this alone. He needed to focus. He needed to be away from Marinette to do this.

When he was out of his and Nino's row, the blond teenager faced the blunette. "Thanks, Mari, but I wanna do this one solo. I can always call Ladybug for help if I need it." He added with the smallest smile curling in the corner of his lips.

"What're you doing, dude?" Nino asked, stopping just before he exited the room.

It wasn't much of a secret that he had fought Rampage a few days prior. It had also been broadcast like to Parisians. It had made the news and everything, so Adrien didn't really feel the need to hide it from his best friend. He didn't mention the phone though. He wanted as few people to know about that as possible. "Just something from an investigator regarding Rampage. I'm hoping it will give me and LB some clues about where the Akuma's are coming from." that was short enough to say what he was doing without saying what he was doing, right?

"Sheesh." Was Nino's only response. He still wasn't quite used to Chat Noir being his best friend. Nino had admired Chat Noir since he had shown up. He had been a bigger fan of him than he had been Ladybug. The fact it was his best friend bewildered him. "Be careful dude. this place would be a lot less interesting without you here."

"Ooh, make sure you give me the scoop once you're back!" Alya added, her phone already in hand, like she was ready to quick-draw if something interesting happened.

With a small smirk, Adrien nodded. "Will do, Alya. Unless it's to valuable to tell."

Alya made a sulking face. She understood, of course, but she liked to mess with the legendary Chat Noir. Not to mention, her best friend, his girlfriend. "You'd tell Marinette."

"He doesn't tell me about this sort of thing!" Marinette lied, embarrassed at Alya's insinuation. It didn't matter that she was lying through the back of her teeth, the mere fact her friend suspected that made her feel her cheeks heat up.

"I'll let you know if something comes up, Mari." Adrien said, making his way out the door. With a final look back and a wave to his friends, Adrien left the room. "See you guys later!"

Marinette sent along her silent prayers for his success. She understood that he wanted to learn about Hawkmoth himself, because he saw this as their fight. Not Ladybug's. He wanted to protect her. And she appreciated that, but had made him promise on the love he had for her that he wouldn't run off and attack Hawkmoth without her.

They were still a team. They still worked together to fight crime. the Cat and bug team. Or the Bug and Cat team, depending on her mood.

"I still can't really believe it." Alya said to the two friends of hers, snapping Marinette back into reality. "He was right there. For so long, he was right there. Chat Noir was right there next to us."

"He's still Adrien." Marinette said, bringing a book up to her chest and holding it against her heart, out of habit. "He didn't tell anyone because he wanted everyone to be safe..."

"Is that what he told you?" Nino asked. Marinette nodded. "I guess it makes sense... But it's still whacked, y'know?"

"He seemed really determined to stop people seeing who Ladybug was." Alya commented, her eyes trailing to the ceiling, as she contemplated, deep in thought.

"Well... She's his partner." Marinette reminded Alya.

"That could be some fierce competition for you, girl."

* * *

He finally had it. In his hands, the phone that had nearly exposed Marinette as Ladybug. The phone that could shed some light on Hawkmoth's identity. The information to end this conflict and fight they had with the super-villain. And Adrien had it in his hands.

He had gotten it done totally for free, despite once again, his willingness to pay. He appreciated the service and the eagerness the late teenager behind the counter obviously had to help the hero of Paris. He still wished everyone would remember that he was still a human being, not some sort of God though.

Finding a nice, secluded spot, Adrien finally started up the phone. It was a high tech iPhone, similar to his own phone. And like his own phone, it has a password, one that required him to slide his finger in a nine-digit combination on the screen. There had been nothing the group had been able to do about that. He had to figure this one out on his own.

About thirty-five attempts later, he still wasn't any closer.

"Urgh... I think I'm starting to understand the appeal of hacking." Adrien muttered to himself with a heavy sigh as he entered in another combination of code. Once again, resulting in failure.

Not knowing what it was, Adrien thought he'd try to spell out his name. Maybe Hawkmoth was so obsessed with the young hero, he'd even changed his password to his name.

He hit the top center button - On an old phone, the letter A would be there. The first letter in Adrien's name. He then swiped it to the one directly right of it, where the D would be on a phone. Next he slid it to where R would be. Then I. Then E. then N.

And the phone unlocked.

"Wait, what, that worked?!" Adrien said aloud, far louder than he would have normally said. "Holy crap, this guy really is obsessive!" He chuckled. "Talk about a downfall."

His smile didn't remain like that for long. It instead became an open frown of fear and disbelief as he looked through the files. He wanted to be wrong. Oh how he wanted to be wrong.

"Adrien..." Plagg commented upon seeing what Adrien was also looking at. "I didn't know, kid. I swear to you, I didn't know."

Despite his hands shaking, he sent a text to Marinette. He told her to ' _Prepare yourself. I have him.'_

He said that... Yet he couldn't stop trembling.

* * *

The rest of the day saw Adrien totally in his own world. Barely even focused on his work. He even totally ignored a few call outs he was given from his teachers, and never even realized it. No one had seemed to be able to spark a reaction from the teenager, to the point where his teachers shrugged it off as his hero business. It was one of the few times that Adrien was happy his identity was revealed. He could get away with things like this.

He was wrong. He had to be wrong. There was no way that he was right.

He couldn't be.

He wasn't.

He _wasn't_.

He had gotten Hawkmoth... But he couldn't have.

He _couldn't_...

"Adrien?"

Marinette's voice broke through to him. He hadn't realized, but he had always welled up some tears without knowing it. He dried them quickly, and faced has girlfriend. "Marinette?"

"The bell rang." She told him. Sure enough, the classroom was empty. Even the teachers weren't in anymore. It was the two teenagers once again, alone in the room. Adrien hadn't even noticed. He didn't even remember a word of what had been said to him over the last few hours.

"Oh... So it did." Was all he could reply with. He nervously chuckled, and scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"You sent me a text..." She could see he was concerned, distressed almost about the results he had found. "...Who is it?"

He knew he had to face him. Adrien knew that. He had to face Hawkmoth. He had to face this.

He had to face his father.

He had to look him in the eye and hear why his phone was at that site.

He needed to _know_.

He needed to hear the _coincidence_.

He needed to hear his father _deny_ it.

Gabriel was not a good father. Adrien knew this now. He knew that Gabriel was not a good father... But he wasn't this bad, was he? He was a neglectful, cold, and driving father... Not an evil villain, right? This had to have an explanation.

"...Marinette... Do you have everything you need to become M'Ladybug?"

"Yeah... Tikki is always with me. Why?"

"...I want to visit my father."

"Your father?" Marinette asked with a raised eyebrow. "What for?"

"The kid found the phones password." Plagg shot from Adrien's jacket, explaining so his human partner didn't have to. "He guessed the password, actually. It was 'Adrien'."

The blunette superheroes eyes shot wide open.

"It gets worse." Plagg said, somberly. "There were files on the phone... And It's Adrien's fathers phone. There's no question. Adrien even called it using his phone. It rung when he called it."

"Oh no..." Tikki could be heard from Marinette's purse, her head poking out of the top. The sympathy she felt for the blond miraculous wielder was evident in her voice.

"It's a coincidence." Adrien said, although he lacked the conviction himself. His voice was basically a whisper, and his hands were shaking as he looked at his fathers phone. "It has to be... Maybe Hawkmoth stole it to throw us off his trail... I mean, he knows who I am... Maybe this is him messing with me..."

"Oh, Adrien..." Marinette hugged her boyfriend as tightly as she could. She knew that he was distraught. He was shaken. And yet, he had asked her if she could become Ladybug when she needed to. If she had everything she needed.

He wanted to know, could she fight if it came down to it.

Could she help him take down his own father?

Adrien hugged her back. "It's a coincidence... Right?" He asked her, looking to her for the nswers. The answer he needed to hear.

The answer Marinette couldn't give.

She didn't know.

"Adrien... Are you sure about this?" She asked. "We don't have to see yourfather today. this... this has to be shocking to you. We can do this another time. We can - "

"No." Adrien said, hugging her tighter. He hurt Marinette, but she didn't make a noise of complaint. His hands were tightly wrapped around her waist, clinging to her like his life depended on it. He didn't even want to see his father. Not today. But he was forcing himself to.

For her.

"I have to know." He told his girl. He held her close, fighting back his own tears. "And if he is... If he is Hawkmoth... We'll stop him."

Those words must have been like swallowing glass to Adrien, Marinette thought. Gabriel Agreste, the fashion designer she admired, was a bad father. She knew this... But his son still thought the world of him. Despite him knowing what kind of a father he was, and spending so much time with someone who loved him back fully, and without condition... He still loved, and cared for his father.

The blunette wasn't sure she could do this if her father was Hawkmoth. And Adrien wasn't either, but he was willing to face this fear of his. For her.

How she loved him...

"You're stronger than I am, Kitty..." Marinette told him. She returned the hug, albeit gentler, and held his head close to her chest. "You're stronger than I am..."

* * *

The two left the school together, hand in hand. Prepared. Anxious, but prepared. they weren't sure what they would face if they did this. There was a possibility that this was all wrong. That Gabriel really wasn't Hawkmoth. They could only hope...

They saw a limo at the foot of the steps.

And they saw Gabriel Agreste. He was stood by the limo, and simply stared at the two young teenagers. He acknowledged their holding hands. His face, cold and frigid, unmoving, and uncaring for the two young lovers emotional connection. He simply gestured for Adrien to get into the car. He then walked around the limousine and got into the shotgun passenger seat.

 _I am still in control of you._

 _Get in the car._

Both Adrien and Marinette looked at one another. And they both nodded. They walked down together.

And they climbed into the passenger seats at the back.

They were driven off once the doors shut. Silence descended.

They were headed to the lair of Hawkmoth.

* * *

Cliff-Hangers are my favorite ^_^ They even keep ME guessing, seeing as I'm prone to changing my stories on a whim's notice : 3

I also have got the ending planned out... O-ho boy, and I gonna throw you guys in for a loop : ) Let's just say you can thank Tumblr for this one. Got a lot of inspiration from there.

I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. You can find more on my , for more stories and a larger community.

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As always, the links to everything are in the description of my profile, and I'll see you in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!


	20. An Emotional Confrontation

The ride to Adrien's home was totally silent. Not a word from anyone. Not a peep. No one even seemed to move, excluding the driver. Not the usual driver, Gorilla, that Adrien had nicknamed him, was there. This was a driver Adrien didn't think he had seen before. Nor was Nathalie, which was surprising. She would normally be here, if only out of compulsion. Perhaps she had a day off today.

And then there was Gabriel, sat up front, not even looking like he was breathing.

In his jacket's pocket, Adrien clutched hold of his fathers phone. What he had seen on there... The link he had made... He didn't want it to be real. He wanted to believe that deep down, his father wasn't a bad person. He had always wanted to believe that. He was cold... But that didn't make him a bad person, right?

Were it not for the fact that Marinette had hold of his other hand, the tension may have broken the young model. Her warm skin comforted the teenage model as they were driven into the beasts lair.

He already knew for a fact that Gabriel didn't approve of Marinette. He didn't even need to see his fathers face to come to that conclusion. Didn't matter to him who she was or what reason he had. She was a negative influence on him. That's what Gabriel thought.

But if he felt that way... Why had he even allowed Marinette in the car? Maybe he thought it easier than arguing with his son in the streets. There was already enough focus on them as it was.

They continued like this, totally void of conversation for the entire ride. Looking out of his window, Adrien was able to see small groups of people, mostly families, interacting in typically normal ways. Fathers, sons and daughters being able to laugh in the way a regular family would be able to. They didn't know how lucky they were.

He felt Marinette's hand tighten around his. He mentally thanked her for that.

Once Adrien's house was into their sight, Adrien felt an odd sense of calm wash over him. This was his home, where he was born and where he was raised. The familiarity of his home helped him to relax. It had been some time since he had been here. It was a place he belonged. Just being here gave him that feeling of security.

He almost had to remind himself, that this place had also been like a prison.

Designed to keep him in.

* * *

"Adrien."

They had walked into Gabriel'f office in complete silence, and the fashion designer had sat down at his desk, in front of a large, painted portrait of Adrien's mother. On Gabriel's desk, was very little to indicate any sort of personality that the man might have had. Nothing but a computer, which he has pushed to the corner to see his son and Marinette clearer, and papers. There was a black glasses case, which was left open, the actual glasses on the middle-aged man's face. Other than that, the desk was bare. Gabriel sat back in his black, leather chair, and place his hands together, which rested upon the surface of his work space.

"Father."

The two had exchanged their normal introductions. Marinette was surprised at how coldly they seemed to speak to one another. They sounded more like an employee and his boss rather than a father and his son. She kept her composure however, standing up tall and stiff, like she was about to break into a salute at any moment. Adrien was more relaxed, but he still kept his posture upright.

Gabriel's cold blue eyes shot, and focused directly on Marinette. Like he was trying to disintegrate her with some sort of optic laser beams. Marinette was frozen in place. This was her role model. Someone she had admired for a long, long time, someone she had wanted to become like.

Also, it was potentially Hawkmoth. She wasn't sure which one of those she found more intimidating.

"This is Marinette. My girlfriend." Adrien said when he realized his father was staring at his girlfriend. He put on a slight edge to his voice, almost defensive. He had no issues establishing that this was the person he loved. Even if his father disapproved.

Even if he wasn't Hawkmoth, he couldn't stop Adrien from seeing her, and it seemed Gabriel also knew this. Even if he wasn't Chat Noir, even if he stopped being Chat Noir, Adrien wasn't going to give up Marinette, no matter what his father tried.

"Adrien." Gabriel stated his sons name again. He was about to make a demand, Adrien knew. His tone of voice always rose slightly when he wanted something. "You are to place your miraculous on the desk and return to your room, while I decide how to dispose of the object."

' _Well, I saw that coming._ ' Adrien thought to himself. Even if Gabriel wasn't the evil creature that had been causing so much destruction throughout the entire city, there was no chance in hell that he was going to allow Adrien to keep being Chat Noir. He pushed this, though. Adrien needed to push this. "And why is that, father?"

"The life of a superhero is not one that you should be living." Was Gabriel's direct answer. "I do not approve of it."

"Of course." Adrien said, nodding his head. "You don't approve of anything except the guidelines you present me..."

Marinette knew what was going on, but still, he mind was in complete shambled. Was this how they had always interacted? Adrien, forced into submission by his father like this? Was he not even prepared to fight his own corner, as he knew the futility of it?Was it only recently... That he had gained the confidence and courage to stand up to him?

"I do have a question though, father." Adrien said, as he walked up to the desk. From his pocket, he placed his fathers phone on the fashion designers work space. Gabriel recognized it immediately. Like Adrien knew he would. While he felt like the answer he would get would devastate him, he made himself ask, his voice shaky every other word. "A few days ago, there was an Akuma called Rampage. He used this phone to try and reveal Ladybug's identity to everyone in Paris. Once his powers wore off, I asked him, where did this phone come from? He said it wasn't his. That it had been given to him. Directly by Hawkmoth." Adrien took a short breath through a small hole he mode with his lips, the sound of air rushing into his mouth audible to the other two people in the room. "So I took it for repairs today. And I found out it was yours, father." Adrien stepped back from the desk, next to Marinette. "Can you please explain this to me?"

Gabriel stared at his phone, and rotated it to face him. He interacted with with with an outstretched arm, like a bomb removal expert, working from a manual, pressing a few buttons and swiping left and right a few times. He occasionally looked at his son and Marinette, calmness still in his expression. He was completely static with his facial expression.

He stood up, suddenly, and walked around the two young teenagers with piercing eyes.

He knew who they were.

Adrien Agreste. His own son. Chat Noir.

And thanks to research, he knew who his girlfriend was. Marinette-Dupain-Cheng. Ladybug.

"...I never would have imagined an iPhone being the reason my identity was uncovered." Gabriel lamented with what sounded like an exhausted sigh. "I was angry. Reckless. How foolish of me. I should have sent a newly purchased device." He looked at his phone and let it drop from his hand onto the floor, where it shattered into pieces once more. "I wanted revenge. I allowed anger to control me. A mistake for anyone, anywhere."

He wasn't even going to attempt to deny his sons accusations. Adrien's eyes widened in both shock and fear. His suspicions had been correct. He was right.

Gabriel Agreste... Was Hawkmoth.

"Since I have decided to be honest with you, Adrien," Gabriel continued, making his way towards the door to the main foyer, "Not long ago, I attempted to Akumatize you. You were, of course, the intended target. No one else would have been put in any danger, had it been a success."

Monotonous. Cold. Factual. Remorseless. Savage. Calculating. Each trait was present in his fathers voice. In Hawkmoth's voice. Adrien shuddered. All this time... "Akumatize?... Father..."

"I had reason to suspect it would not work... But your emotions, your anger, your frustration... They had bubbled up into the perfect ingredient for my little Akuma. Not attempting so would have been foolish." Gabriel continued, not even turning around as he left the room, followed by Marinette and Adrien, both the teenagers still shaken by the fact that Hawkmoth was right there, in front of the two of them, not even attempting to hide himself anymore. Marinette kept her distance, hanging back about three meters. Adrien didn't bother doing that, walking directly behind his father, still not wanting to accept this.

"Father... Why..." Adrien asked, his voice breaking in sadness.

"Because I wanted your miraculous." Gabriel spoke totally without hesitation. "When the Akumatization failed, I targeted the nearest person to you. Using Blank, the plan was the use them to make you forget all about your life as Chat Noir. You would have returned home, and none of this would have ever happened." turning around to face the two teenagers, he focused don Marinette. "And the girl just happened to be the closest one there... And when the Akuma failed to infect her, I was left asking questions."

Marinette and Adrien both stepped back a few steps.

He _knew_.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Gabriel said, like he was introducing himself to her for the very first time, "Ladybug."

That was why he had allowed her into the car.

This was a trap.

"To think my son would have fallen in love with Ladybug... How complicated." Gabriel shook his head. "Do you know why I want the miraculous? In fact... What do you think i want them for? Power? Money? Conquest?" He wasn't even really waiting for an answer. "Adrien... This has all been for you."

"Me?..." Adrien didn't want this. He didn't want any of this.

"With the miraculous, I can bring back your mother."

Those words rocked Adrien's entire world. did the miraculous have that sort of power? He never knew hat had actually happened to his mother, whether she had died, or run away, or if she was in hiding somewhere, or whatever it was. But since he was a boy... Since he had been left alone with his father...

How he had wanted to see her...

He looked at his ring, his miraculous. Did this magical object... This device that he had wielded for so long... Have the power to bring her back?

"Adrien, you can't listen to him!" He heard Marinette shouting at him from her position, backed up a few meters from him. "You know it's a lie!"

"I assure you, Ladybug, this is no lie." Gabriel said, toxic anger in his voice. "I have had my own miraculous far longer than either of you two have. I understand the full power of a miraculous. I understand their limits. I understand each and every power, ability, effect and far more, than you would be able to comprehend. This can, and will bring back your mother, Adrien."

"No..."

"Do you not - "

Silenced, by a brutal reverse punch to the gut. Adrien had gone, from a shaking wreck in one second, to an angered child the next, and had thrown the strongest punch he could muster from his right had right into Gabriel's stomach.

"I don't care." Adrien said, with venom in his voice, his fist still in his fathers stomach. With his remaining strength, he pushed his fist forward, which sent Gabriel back a few meters, and onto the ground as he gasped for oxygen. "I don't know what mother saw in you. Maybe you were a different man when you met her... But no matter where she is, alive, dead, hiding in Paris, or in another country... She wouldn't want to see you like this, father." He used every ounce of strength to say those words. "I want to see mother again. I always have, and always will... But not like this. I won't... I won't make her suffer seeing someone she loved turn into... Whatever it is you are now, father."

Marinette saw Adrien's hands. He was trembling. He was completely mortified, and he still didn't want to accept it.

And how could he? This was his father. Despite everything... It was still his father.

"But the main reason I won't let you do this... Is something so simple, so selfish that it almost makes me angry that it's whats motivating me." Adrien told his father, trembling in fear and anger. "You hurt Marinette. You hurt Ladybug. You hurt the girl I love. "

This wasn't a fight for justice to Adrien. This wasn't a fight about morality. This wasn't even about defending the people of Paris. It wasn't even about stopping Hawkmoth anymore.

This was because of Marinette, the love of his life.

And how his father had hurt her.

And how he wanted to protect her.

As soon as he had finished declaring this to his father, he found himself in the presence of two shadows, dropping towards him. From the roof? Adrien threw himself backwards, away from his father and towards Marinette, just before he found the floor beneath him completely crushed by the weight of one bulking behemoth, and one slim figure who joined him shortly after.

Adrien recognized them. They were both Akumatized, but he recognized them.

His muscles pushed to points far beyond the human limits, and having apparently turned feral, looking more like a bloodhound - A werewolf, almost, than he did a human. Grey fur covering his body in places it normally would, with a rabid glare and a ferocious set of teeth.

The slim figure was covered head to toe in a sort of white leather-substitute. Along each one of her limbs, there was a horizontal black like that detailed each one of her joints. Within her hand, was a necklace of some sort, mutated to look like some kind of hypnotic pendent. Across her face, and around her eyes, was a mark, with black around the outlines, and totally white otherwise. In her hair, was a headband, with similar details to the face mask.

It was Rampage and Blank.

Gorilla and Nathalie.

"You... Did this to them?!" Adrien yelled in anger at his father. Turning random people into villains in Paris... That was one thing... But these were his employees. People he wad worked with for years. People Adrien knew and at least cared for. Were they nothing to his father? Just tools that he kept around in case they had a use some day?

"I thought he could only Akumatize one person at a time..." Marinette said, her teeth gritting.

"Normally, that's true.." Gabriel's voice, albeit wheezier now, informed Marinette. "But you two failed to purify these two. So I can Akumatize with them again. These two were available for infection... So here they are." He sighed. "If you had only surrendered your miraculous, Adrien, It would not have to have come to this." Gabriel took another deep breath, and begun making his way up the stairs. He needed to reach the attic, to acquire his own miraculous. He would use force if he had to. "Hold them off." He told his two lackeys.

"Father!" Adrien called. His eyes, pleading. "Please..." He begged. "Don't do this..."

Gabriel hadn't wanted it to come to this. This hadn't even been on his worst case scenarios plan, because he simply hadn't wanted to consider it. This was all for Adrien. "You'll understand soon, son." Gabriel said, the first lines of genuine affection Adrien could remember from his father, before he pointed towards the two teenagers. "Take their miraculous'!"

"Adrien!..." Marinette urged, despite knowing how difficult this had to be. She didn't want to ask him to do this... But without him, without Chat Noir... She didn't stand a chance.

"I know, Mari..." Adrien said, his heart crushed. Had he done something to cause all this? Was it his own fault? He knew that his father had made a bad choice... And he had to be stopped... But he didn't want to. but if he didn't, Marinette would be in danger.

In that moment, Adrien chose Marinette over Hawkmoth.

"Plagg!" Adrien called for. "Claws out!"

"Tikki!" Marinette also called for her Kwami. " Spots on!"

* * *

 **So excited to get these next few chapters out, I worked on this solidly since I woke up this morning! (After my morning walk, of course.) : D**

 **I wanted this chapter to focus on the sheer terror I feel Adrien would be forced to face if he learned of his fathers identity as Hawkmoth. It's gonna get dark from here on out guys, So I do warn you. Oh man, I'm having way too much fun being an evil bastard : )**

 **I do hope you enjoyed this! Every chapter we see, the closer we get to the end, and the closer we get to the end, the closer we get to starting the new Miraculous story I have planned.**

 **To that end, you can also find me on Wattpad, GamingEmpire, where I have an earlier updateing schedual, and can interact with you guys more. I nearly have reached my summer goal of 50 followers, So I'm nearly there guys! : D**

 **You can also follow me on YouTube, which a few of you guys have been doing - I thank you for that very much so. You guys are awesome, as well as you guys who are just here reading.**

 **you can also follow me, and get involved in the creation of more stories by me, such as Soul Link, by finding my Tumblr, GamingEmpire. Credit goes to anyone who gives me an idea, so we can all benefit and craft a masterpiece together ^_^ (I'm also in serious need of someone who can make an Icon for Soul-Link ^_^')**

 **Links to everything are in my profile description, and as always, I hope you enjoyed, and will see you in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	21. I'm Going To Kill You

Chat Noir had outmaneuvered Gorilla before. Many times. It wasn't difficult to avoid him, or even use force against him when required. He always felt guilty about doing so, but in the moment, he rarely felt like he had a choice, and would act out of sheer impulse to protect himself, and protect Ladybug.

Of course, that was before Gorrilla had gotten Akumatized by Hawk - By Gabriel. Now he was Rampage. An Akuma that he had been able to defeat out of nothing but luck. Muscle Augmentation allowed him to push his already bodyguard worthy physique to far beyond its normal limits.

The result was a monster in human form.

"Rrrrrraaaaargh!" Rampage threw a series of right and left hooks, each one coming one after another at rapid speeds, ranging at different parts of Chat's body. One right hook would be aimed for the cat-themed heroes head, while the next left hook might be aimed for Chat's ribs. The young hero had to backpedal back as quickly as he could manage to avoid these various, speedy attacks, unsure of what attack was going to come from where next.

Blank was Ladybug's opponent. It appeared that alongside the abilities that Adrien had told her about, Ladybug also had to content with some impressive martial arts done by the Akumatized receptionist. She made every effort to not allow Blank to remain grabbing hold of her body for more than three seconds - After that interval was up, Ladybug's memories could be vanished. While this made hand-to-hand combat a very dangerous option, Ladybug didn't have a lot of other options, short of dropping something on the poor woman, and she was trying to defeat her and purify her Akuma, not kill her.

She couldn't rely on Chat for backup here either. He had his hands full fighting Rampage.

Spinning her yo-yo as quickly as she could manage, Ladybug threw it at the receptionist, hoping to have it tie her up, bind her arms, and prevent her from moving. Unfortunately, Blank's combat skills had also been tripled thanks to the Akumatization. She was able to grab the flying yo-yo, and tug it towards her before Ladybug could comprehend the action, finding herself being dragged towards Blank's outstretched, grasping palm. If she grabbed hold of the red and black heroine, her memories could be taken from her. "Come here, Ladybug!" The villain yelled, this persona of a usually strict and restricted receptionist apparently enjoying herself.

"There's no way I'm letting you erase any of my memories!" Ladybug shouted back, and let go of the string, which gave her momentum, and kept her skidding towards to villain, despite now holding onto nothing. With this added force, Ladybug launched a sniping roundhouse kick to the side of Blank's head. the spin and force magnified to kicks usual power two fold, making Blank's head shoot to the left before she had even registered the strike. She dropped the miraculous wielders yo-yo, and the original owner scooped it back up. Blank was defeated, knocked out by one powerful strike to the head. She had an esper like power - A paranormal power, not one that used the body, like Rampage - Which meant her body wasn't magnified in strength, unlike Rampage.

"That was a lot less stressful than I thought." Ladybug muttered to herself, but she wasn't complaining. She quickly had to identify what object the receptionist had where the Akuma resided - And quickly found it to be a radio that she had in her ear. The purification process only took a few moments. This meant Hawkmoth would be unable to use this one against her or Adrien again at least.

"My Lady, a little help?!" Chat called over, leaping from a wall that was shattered a second after he jumped from it by a muscled monster, with a huge roar after. Chat skidded next to Ladybug, stopping just a few feet from her. "Gorilla was tough to start with. Now he's a walking pile-driver. I don't think we'll be able to beat him with just pure strength."

Ladybug agreed. She had seen Chat's original fight, with the original Rampage. she understood the powers well enough, and this guy was like a truck come to life. If they wanted to defeat him, they needed to locate the object the Akuma infected, or outsmart him. Or both, knowing this particular Akuma. Just one of those strategies might not be enough. "Any ideas?"

"You're the smart one, M'Lady." Chat complimented with a smirk. "I don't know. His Akuma seems to be in that right on his right hand, that's all I've figured out. It's been tough enough to avoid getting battered into nothingness with this guy!"

"Lure him outside, near the gate!" Ladybug ordered, thinking up something on the fly. This may work, it may not. "I've got a plan."

"Good to see you're so willing to risk my life, my love." Chat said with sarcasm before extending his baton. "Get going. I can handle him. How long do you need?"

"About a minute." Ladybug told him, concerned. "Are you sure you can handle it?"

"Have I let you down before, Bugaboo?" before he could get a reply, he spun his baton in his hands, and urged a ravenous Rampage towards him. Come on then, Rampage! Andele, andele!" He taunted, aiming to get the Akuma angry enough not to notice his girlfriend. ' _I trust you, Marinette. Always have, always will.'_

He certainly acquired the attention of the Akuma with that. Rampage roared at Chat Noir, and, using its powers to boost its leg muscles, shot at Chat like a bullet, and with roughly the same amount of force too. the cat hero ducked a split second before a fist would have made connection with his nose. Behind him was a wall, before it was completely crushed as a result of the punch. He rolled underneath the impressive man's figure, and stood at the other side, his usual grin in place.

"I thought you were quicker than that! Come on, try and hit me!" He allowed some of his cockiness to take place in his voice, as he bore his teeth to the Akuma. He only needed to keep this up for a few seconds longer. His cat-like green eyes met with the villain's blood red ones.

Another attack came from Rampage, with a hammer-fist downward strike, which left an impact around the huge fist. Chat dodged it by skidding to the side, and then, to get away from the creature, he jumped on it's arm, and back-flipped away. he leaped out of the door, figuring that Ladybug had had enough time to prepare her plan, whatever it was.

Predictably, Rampage followed after Chat with little thought at to what the hero could be doing. His fangs and what appeared to be claws ready to rip apart the teenage boy, he ran at Chat Noir with little other focus.

He didn't even notice the trip-wire.

"Chat Noir, now!" Ladybug yelled from behind a corner. Her plan, albeit it incredibly basic, hand worked. All she had done was tie her yo-yo to a drainage pipe, and had hidden around a corner. The line on her yo-yo was thin, but sturdy, so it had worked wonders for an Akuma with such a limited line of sight.

Chat charged at the falling Akuma, and slammed his foot on the bodyguard's ring-finger. He applied far more force than he had ever applied when stomping something into the ground, so he thought he heard a few broken fingers. But he had also managed to break the ring, and out fluttered the evil Akuma, trying to escape. Ladybug didn't allow that.

Their battle with the two Akumatized villains already over, Chat found himself basically drenched in sweat, and felt his hand shake as an after effect from the adrenaline that had ran through his body. He panted, trying to catch his breath, as well as calm himself down, from the short, but high paced and intense battle. "You... .You didn't... You didn't mess around with Blank, huh, M'Lady?..." He asked, panting all the while, his hands on his knees as he used them to support his exhausted body. It had only taken her a single kick. Impressive, even for her.

Ladybug wiped the sweat she had from her brow with her left arm. "Just a good kick I guess." She said with a heavy sigh of her own. "Are you okay?"

"I didn't get hit. I'm fine."

"Not what I meant."

"... It is what it is..." Chat said, standing upright. "I chose you over him. I always would have done, and always will do. I don't care if he has my mother up there right now. I still choose you, M'Lady."

His emotional turmoil wasn't that simply sorted. There was no way that he was this okay with everything, and Ladybug knew this. He was burying his dark, his demonic emotions, to continue the fight. This wasn't something that he should have to do. this was something no one should have to do, and part of her wanted to tell him to sit this fight out.

But what else could she do? She couldn't defeat Hawkmoth on her own. She knew this too well. She was good. She was skilled... But that wasn't going to b enough to defeat Hawkmoth. Not alone. She had just seen how absolutely ruthless he could be, prepared to attack even his own son... She needed Adrien. She needed Chat Noir.

And here he was. He hadn't run away. He hadn't given up. He knew that his worst nightmare was reality.

But he refused to abandon her.

Leaning over to him, she planted a kiss on his cheek. affection the two of them rarely displayed in their hero forms. "You're stronger than I am for doing this."

Chat blushed lightly and smiled weakly at the heroine. "I'm only this strong _because_ of you."

* * *

His own son had been unable to understand why he was doing all of this. That saddened Gabriel somewhat. He had hoped that once he knew the truth, Adrien would take his side. The opposite, in fact, happened.

He felt at his stomach, where his own son had slammed a powerful punch into him. He still felt the effects of such a strike. His own powers were more suited to calling upon a champion to fight on his behalf. He hadn't used too much of his physical capabilities to actually combat anyone in a long time. He was out of shape, for combat, anyway, whereas Adrien must have been in the perfect state, to get a punch like that off despite his normally thin stature.

That wasn't to say that Hawkmoth on the other hand, had no physical powers.

They were just more lethal than he would have liked to use. Used directly against someone, it could easily kill them.

But he knew how to wound someone.

And he could live with wounding his son.

After all, that was bound to be a mere people in the pond, as it were. A minor setback. Once he had his wife back... everything would go back to how they should be.

"Nooroo." Gabriel said, rather wheezily, as he made his way into his usual operating lair, which was his attic. surrounded by moths, he found his own Kwami, the timid and knowledgeable Moth Kwami, waiting for his master in the center of the room, as per usual.

"Master?" The squeeky voiced creature floated over to his master, noticing the punch he had received. "What has happened to you?"

"Did you know?"

"Master?"

"I asked you if you knew my own son was Chat Noir!" Gabriel exploded suddenly, frightening the tiny Kwami.

His master had known about his son's identity for a long time now, but had never once asked Nooroo about it. He had barely even spoken to the creature since, only when he had absolutely no other choice but to do so. This was the first time he had even addressed him by name, not by a command to transform since the incident with Overgrow.

"M-Master, I told you, I can't detect the presence of other Kwami from up here. My - My sensory abilities are limited when I'm surrounded by so many other life forms." Nooroo explained to his wielder, hoping to not incur his wrath.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir are here." Gabriel said with a hint of anger in his voice. Anger that his Kwami had been so useless at telling Gabriel this important piece of information, or at his own son for defying him, Nooroo would never know. "Prepare to transform me."

"M-Master... Chat Noir... Your son... You want to fight your son?"

"No, Nooroo, I don't, but I don't have a choice here!" Gabriel yelled again at the timid Kwami. "Everything I've worked for is in danger, Nooroo. I'll put Adrien in the hospital if that's what it's going to take. He'll understand eventually."

"...Yes, master..." Nooroo agreed, reluctant and, quite frankly, disappointed. He could only hope, pray even, that his master would fall in this upcoming battle. He hated having to help someone like this wield a power to use in the name of evil, even if, in some long forgotten stage, Nooroo wanted to help his master achieve his goals. He had understood his masters pain, his sorrow. He had wanted to help... Instead, he now found himself essentially a hostage, a tool for his master to use, no different to a car jack or a butchers knife.

Gabriel attached the Moth broach to his suit, just above his heart, where he normally placed it. The miraculous inside shining, glittering in the thin veil of light that shone upon it.

"Father!"

Gabriel turned his head about sixty degrees to his right, where he saw the door he had just stumbled through open wide, and his son and his detestable partner stood there, already having defeated his Akumatized villains. He had barely even gotten into the room, and they had defeated his ambush in less than a few minutes? He cursed.

"I must admit, you've gotten good at your fighting of my Akuma." Gabriel complimented in a backhanded way. He managed to make his compliment sound like an insult, no matter how he did it.

"Give it up!" Ladybug yelled. "You can't beat both of us!"

"Father... Just stop this. It's over." Chat pleaded. He didn't want to fight his father. He didn't want to hurt him, despite all the terrible things he had done. He was still his fathers son.

"It saddens me that you can't understand why I'm doing this, Adrien." Gabriel reluctantly sighed, placing his hands atop his broach. "I'm not afraid to hurt you. I will do what it takes to bring your mother back to us. I have been planning for this eventuality for over a year... I won't allow all the work I've done to be destroyed. Even if you are my only child." Gabriel seemed to adjust the broach, and it began to glow. "You'll understand soon, Adrien." The fashion designer then seemed to sweep the air in front of him, and he yelled out a command. "Nooroo!"

The process was brief, and Gabriel seemed to glow blackness as he was covered from head to toe in the dark, purple suit. His hands were covered in coal black colored gloves, which wrapped themselves around a long, cylindrical cane, which he twirled in his right hand. his face was covered in a silver balaclava object, leaving only holes for his mouth, and for his eyes.

Before the young heroes, now stood Hawkmoth. The villain they set out to defeat, now looking the part as well as sounding it.

To Chat, this only confirmed that he couldn't reason with his father. He had failed to make this a conflict-less solution. He had to fight. He had to stop this... Even if he had to fight his own father.

"Chat..." Ladybug tried to say, but couldn't get past his name.

"I know..." Chat reluctantly sighed. He had to remind himself, that this was all for Marinette. This was to protect her.

The cane that Hawkmoth was twirled a few more times, a darkness appearing at the top of the cylindrical object, like a dark mutated sludge. It wasn't until it began to take shaped of its own that the two young heroes realized that this sludge was alive, almost, bending to the whims of darkness. This was one of the powers Hawkmoth had in his arsenal. Shadow Manipulation and physical conjuration.

The villain aimed at the two heroes, and the sludge became solid, like steel, and shot towards Chat and Ladybug. Both of them evaded the attack by splitting apart and dashing at their highest speeds. The attacking blackness shot after them both again, targeting both of the young heroes with extreme prejudice. Chat and Ladybug were quick, but they had to rely on their ability to dodge these attacks more than they ever had ever had to in their lives.

Hawkmoth didn't even move from the spot he had secured himself into. He was completely fine with letting the two of them tired themselves out like this.

Surprisingly, it was Chat who lost his patience for the back and forth running he had to go through with Hawkmoth. Ladybug was in danger thanks to all of this, and that fact alone pissed him off to now end.

He growled, and sprinted straight towards Hawkmoth, his claws ready to do what they had to do. He was able to leap and skip over some of the attacks that came his way. He hesitated for just a moment when he finally reached Hawkmoth, and the two of them locked eyes. Could he really do this? This was his father... No, he had to! He had to stop this! It didn't matter that it was his father!... But was he seriously prepared to end another persons life?

That answer came far too late.

Hawkmoth had Chat exactly in the perfect place, and seemed to smirk to himself that he had managed this without even moving. Two more dark apparitions came from his cane, and with speed Chat couldn't track, they shot towards him. They weren't lethal attacks. They aimed for lodging themselves between Adrien's elbows, crippling his ability to use his arms in the fight anymore.

"Adrien, move!" Ladybug yelled.

The next few seconds were a blur.

Chat Noir found himself on the floor, covered in blood. But he felt no pain. He checked himself for wounds, finding none whatsoever. when he looked up, he saw two pronged dark strikes barely an inch from his face... And they were dripping with blood. It took him a second to realize whose it was, due to disorientation he felt from being shoved aside so forcefully and unexpectedly.

Thanks in part to the darkness the attic seemed to have as well, Chat had been unable to see much of anything except Hawkmoth when he ran at him. Now he was able to see a figure in front of him.

The sight of the blood now terrified him.

It wasn't his.

It was Ladybug's blood.

In the split second before the attacks had hit him, Ladybug had pushed him out of the way of the attacks on impulse, unable to control her own body. The blood didn't show too well in her red and black-polka dotted skin tight jumpsuit, but thee blood was a darker shade of red.

Chat's eyes widened.

The attack had pierced right through her stomach and near one of her lungs, and straight out the back, like a sword wound. He could hear Ladybug coughing, her knee's shaking, but her hand in a fight fist.

"No..." Chat said quietly, looking in sheer horror at the sight before him. His hands became a trembling mess, and tears welled up in his eyes, spilling down his cheeks in a matter of seconds. His voice trembled as well, and he struggled to even get breath past his throat as he fought back the urge to start sobbing right there and then. "Why... Why..."

Disturbingly, her voice still sounded somewhat peppy. Slowly, she turned her head to face him, the action clearly paining her, as she made small sounds of discomfort and of unbearable pain as she did so, a thick line of blood ran down from the corner of her mouth, but she was still able to give him that same smile that would normally warm his heart. It now mortified him. "Because... You're always saving me... You've been doing that a lot lately... So it's... My... turn..."

Hawkmoth showed no real emotion at what he had done, and recalled his shadows back to atop his cane. He could heard Ladybug's coughs and sputters as he pulled out his attack, but cared not for it. He did it slowly, and allowed her to collapse on the spot, caught by Chat Noir. that attack hadn't intended to hit where it had hit. Ladybug had simply been unlucky. Had she not gotten in the way, Adrien would have lost to use of his forearms for maybe a week.

Now there was a very real chance she could die.

Ladybug's transformation wore off before she'd even hit the floor.

"Marinette!" Chat screamed, and cradled his girlfriend's body. "No, no, no, _no, no, no, no_ , don't... No, no, no, no... No... _Marinette, no_..." Tears ran down his face, and he felt like he was about to throw up. He was shaking like a leaf, his eyes wider than they had ever been in his entire life. Marinette's eyes were completely shut, and Chat saw no signs of breathing.

"Chat!" It took chat a few times before he could even hear his girlfriends Kwami. "I can close her wound and buy her some time using magic, but we need to get her to a doctor as right now!"Tikki informed him. Kwami had that ability, to reduce wounds and blood-loss. Plagg did the same for Adrien.

"You're not leaving here with those miraculous." Hawkmoth coldly stated.

" _Marinette_..." Chat cried, hugging the girl he loved, who he wasn't even sure was alive or not anymore. She didn't move, made no responses, but he couldn't accept she had just died like that... She couldn't be dead... "You can't be dead, Mari... You can't..."

"If we get her to a hospital right now, there's a chance!" Tikki yelled, tears in her own eyes. she cared for Marinette like Chat did. It was hard for Chat to remember that at a time like this.

Hawkmoth watched the display silently. He didn't feel a thing. not for his son. Not for the Kwami. Not for the girl who was probably dying as he looked on. She had been Ladybug. His sworn enemy. He had won, as far as he was concerned. "Had you just surrendered your miraculous, Adrien, this would not have - "

"Shut the _fuck_ up."

Chat tears still rolled down his face, but his expression conveyed nothing sad. His hands still trembled, but out of hardly contained rage, not sadness or fear. His teeth were bore, not from his usual grin, but out of anger and hate. He slowly stood up, laying Marinette down on the floor carefully, and made a makeshift bandage out of her shirt, disregarding the fact he had essentially undressed her from the waist up to do so. His hands were covered in his lady's blood.

Everything about him was the opposite of his usual self, of his usual happy felt.

Now there was only blackness and anger.

"...Tikki, keep Marinette alive. I don't give a damn how hard it is. Just do it." He ordered, coldly. "We'll get her to a hospital." He turned to face his father. He was furious. Enraged. Beyond enraged.

He wanted blood.

"This will only take a minute."

Marinette... The sweetest girl he had ever known. Ladybug, the more heroic, most perfect girl he had ever known... they were one in the same. He had chosen Marinette. The girl who had made him feel alive the most. And she had been Ladybug...

Adrien had never been happier. Her love made him feel like he mattered... He loved her back for so many reasons... Her smile. the way she made him feel like he mattered. The way she would laugh, and the way she would look out for him as Ladybug.

The most important person in his life to him.

The only reason he existed.

And the reason she was dying was right in front of Chat Noir.

"You..." Chat said, with barely contained, unbridgeable hatred. He glared at his father, tears still running down his face.

He had failed Marinette. He had failed to protect her. He had failed to keep his promise that nothing bad would happen. He had promised her she would be safe. That he would end this fight before either of them got hurt.

If she died, he died.

But Hawkmoth did too. Chat was focused on nothing else.

And ran at him, his claws ready and sharp. His teeth ready, longing to rip his flesh from his father's body. His mind creative with thoughts of painful ends.

 _ **"I'm gonna fucking kill you!"**_

* * *

 **I did warn you that this was getting dark.**

 **I gotta be honest, there was a big part of me that was thinking Adrien should have been the one to go down in this chapter, but after a few drafts, I thought it made more sense for it to be Marinette. The worst part? This isn't even it.**

 **I am one, evil, evil scumbag.**

 **Regardless of my brutal and utterly horrific ways, I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. This one was incredibly hard for me to write for some reason. Nothing felt right about my plans once I set them in motion, but I got to this stage, and I feel like its not a bad chapter. Maybe I'm being too critical. I just hope the feel came across ;-;**

 **Also... *demonic face* you little shits want smut, do you? You're speaking to the only person on the entire internet who has written a fully completed Lemon on Fondantshipping. Provided I decide if Marinette lives or not, I might just grace you. Now please stop asking me : 3**

 **That aside, I hope you enjoyed. you can follow me on Wattpad, GamingEmpire, for earlier updates, and thanks to you guys, we reached our summer goal of 50 followers! Can we make it 75 now?**

 **you can also follow me on the YouTubes for the funnies and the Animes and the likes. We have fun, and you get to see me in my mentally unstable ways that make me long for blood : D**

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 **Links to everything are in the profile description!**

 **And I hope you enjoyed, again, And I will see you, in whatever it is, I do indeed, decide to write next. See ya!**


	22. We're Heroes - Not Vigilantes

There wasn't any logic in Chat Noir's attacks. There wasn't any planning. There were no ideas. There wasn't any strategy that the furious teenager was using, no grand plan, no clever tricks or ace-in-the-hole move he had prepared to take out his bastard of a father.

All he was was impulse. Pure, ravenous impulse, driven by nothing more than pure anger and hatred towards Hawkmoth. He was driven by blood-lust, and an insatiable desire to inflict unbearable pain against the masked villain. He wanted to rip his father apart, limb from limb.

So that's how he attacked.

" _Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!_ " Chat screamed at Hawkmoth, his hands poised like reach claws, each one of his fingers bent, like they were gripping around an imaginary baseball, poised to attack. He used his right leg to send him lunging at the evil villain in front of him, aiming to land a solid strike right in Hawkmoth's face.

With impressive speed and unexpected reflexes, his father was able to dodge and evade the attack his son launched at him. In that moment, however, he saw that his son wasn't even really a person anymore. Rather, he was an animal he has pushed too far. Reason was lost to his son. He just wanted blood.

A series of scratches and attacks came from the enraged demon, with Hawkmoth having to block or evade them with what reflexes and speed he actually had in him. Part of him was amazed Adrien even had the physical capabilities to launch such a series of strikes with this regularity, seemingly unrestricted by the fatigue, sweat, or lactic acid build up that the Akuma-creating villain himself was experiencing. A few scratched made their way onto Hawkmoth's body, tearing at his suit, inflicting slight, but not overwhelming pain to the cornered grown up.

" _You scum!_ " Chat roared at Hawkmoth again, launching a side kick from his left leg, only to be side stepped again. His attacks were unorganized, but they were quick, and they were lethal. Before his left foot had even hit the floor, Chat was coming in with a reverse punch, aimed directly to crush the adult's windpipe. Reflexively, Hawkmoth used his arm to smack away the incoming attack, but Chat Noir landed forward, and with an equally violent strike, slammed his left fist into his fathers lower abdomen.

Despite his figure, Hawkmoth did possess a few muscles around his stomach region, but these were absolutely no match for Chat's full on assault, essentially, they gave way to the combination of speed and pure power Chat Noir had applied. Those hours spent weightlifting paying off in that regard, boosting the young heroes power now. Winded by the strike, Hawkmoth gasped as the fist lodged inside his weakened part. _'Damn it... He's too fast... He's not even giving me time to manipulate any shadows...'_

A right elbow-sweep-strike came from Chat this time, smashing right into Hawkmoth's jaw. Adrien's normally slim and sharp figure meant his elbows were rather pointed, adding additional blunt force to the strike Chat now threw at the purple-suited villain before him. He grinned, satisfied that he had felt such a strike against his father's skull, and launched a second one, this time with even more power, hoping he would break his fathers jaw. He wasn't that lucky, but the simple feeling pleased Chat. Sadistical pleasure surged through the young hero with each strike he made.

 _It was revenge._

 _Delicious revenge for what he had done to Marinette._

It wasn't enough for Chat though. That was light compared to what had happened to the love of his life. Power surging throughout his body, Chat slammed grabbed hold of Hawkmoth's suit by the collar, and spun him around, tossing him against a wall, which was a good ten meters away. Far beyond Adrien's natural body strength. He was being given enormous strength due to this emotional situation. His body gave him to power he needed to do whatever he wanted to this evil bastard.

With a momentary break from Chat's beatings, Hawkmoth managed to conjure up his shadowy sludge once more from the darkness of the attack. The shapes and dark colors mixed together in his palm, ready to burst at any moment.

Charging with an outreached palm on his right hand, Chat prepared to make one huge strike against his father, completely disregarding the lurching threat of a shadow-based attack. Truth be told, he still had no idea entirely what attack he was going to use against the scumbag in front of him, but he wasn't going to let something so small stop him from engaging in this act of violence.

"Shadow Strike!" Hawkmoth called his move before he used it, and once he had called it, the blades of the shadows shot towards Chat Noir once again. Boosted by adrenaline and rage, Chat was able to dodge practically every single strike his father launched at him.

Except for one.

Distracted by his sole focus being on Hawkmoth, Chat was left unaware to a hidden blade of shadow, which shot up at him and pierced his upper right arm, and tore all the way down, ripping open his flesh. He didn't feel it. Opioids in his brain had been working their magic long before this strike hit, and numbed the pain to an almost insane degree. Miraculous wielders already felt little pain, but apply enough force, and it would eventually get through. This would have caused serious pain had Adrien's brain not been producing a painkiller effect already.

He selectively forgot to use his right arm, at least for this second, and switched to throwing a right punch at Hawkmoth. He missed, by just an inch, as Hawkmoth moved himself to the side. The villain retaliated, throwing a harsh punch of his own, slamming into Adrien's face. His nose become bloody, but he didn't even register it. Without thinking, like an animal, Chat unhinged his jaw, and bit down on Hawkmoth's wrist with as much force as he could muster.

"Argh!" Hawkmoth's first cry of actual pain came. Chat's teeth sunk, piercing the skin line, and digging deep into the carpel runnel, and pressing against the tendons, essentially wrecking any hope Hawkmoth or Gabriel had of using that wrist for quite a long time.

Chat let go of his fathers wrist to avoid another punch, this time from his fathers opposing hand. Ducking underneath it, Chat countered with an uppercut-open-palm strike. With the claws on the ends of his fingers, Chat's attack sunk underneath Hawkmoth's skin, and ripped upwards.

Damaging the villains left eye.

" _Aaaaaaargh_!"

A spurt of crimson shot from the older mans optical socket, partially blinding him, pain rocketing throughout his nerves.

But Chat wasn't done yet.

Using his right arm once again, and leaving his palm wide open, a slam strike on the nose pummeled into Hawkmoth's skull, smashing the evildoer into the wall, and breaking his nose in the process. Still not satisfied, Chat launched a knee-strike into Hawkmoth's stomach, and let him slide down the wall, coughing up blood, and spitting out his dislodged teeth.

His miraculous wore out, to reveal the bloody, now disfigured mess of a human being, beaten, and leaning against the wall. A broken, bloody nose. Three, deep claw marks, and once heavily bleeding eye, now probably permanently useless. Bruises and scratches everywhere, staining the previously smart and expensive suit he wore of norm. Skin hung on by a thread in some places.

But he was still breathing.

Grabbed once again by the collar, Chat opened up his right palm, and channeled every single ounce of anger, of pure hate into his special move. He was unwavering. Murderous intent had set itself upon his heart. He was more than willing, and eager, to do this. "Cataclysm!" He yelled, and plunged forward with his strike, preparing to end the threat of Hawkmoth once and for all.

"Adrien..."

Chat Noir stopped old, a few inches from his fathers face. his eyes widened, and his body weakening.

He turned.

And his green eyes met Marinette's blue ones.

"Mari..." He said, softly. She was still conscious, after that hell she had been through? How was that even possible? "Oh my God... Mari..."

"If you keep... Hurting him... He'll die..." She told him, still coughing up blood from her horrifically large wounds. She still managed to have a smile on her face, despite the clearly huge pain she was in, but she also had a stern expression at the same time.

"He... Mari... Look at yourself! He needs to die for what he's done! Not just to you! To all of us! To me! To Nino! to Alya! To Ivan, to Rose, to Nathaniel, to Sabrina, to Chloe and to everyone else! He needs to go!..."

"Adrien..." Marinette smiled at him, weakly. She couldn't stop him. She knew that. If he wanted to, he would do it right there and then, and that would be it. And she wouldn't be able to blame him for it. No one would. No one would even dare press charges against him. No one would even want to. He would be perfectly justified.

But she didn't want him to.

Because he wasn't a villain.

She chose her words carefully, before she passed out again.

"We're... Heroes... We're not... Vigilantes..."

Chat's eyes shot open, and his memory came flooding back to him. That day.

The day everything changed.

The day he saw Ladybug and felt nothing.

The day he began to feel for Marinette.

The day that changed everything for him.

He had thought the exact same thing.

Ladybug was a hero. Not a vigilante.

And Chat Noir was her partner.

A hero.

Adrien was under no illusions. He wanted to kill Gabriel. He wanted to end the miserable scumbags life right here, right now. Not just for him. Not just for Marinette. Not for any one person. But for everyone ever hurt by the evil parasite that was Hawkmoth. Killing him right now would bring absolute certainty to the safety of the people of Paris. And it came with the added bonus of giving Adrien the immense satisfaction of revenge.

He wanted to kill his own father.

He slammed his fist.

And used Cataclysm on sheet iron that was kept in the attic.

Turning it into a powerful rope, Adrien tied it would his father. He wasn't gentle, either. The metal cut into his fathers skin, but it didn't kill him.

The fight over, Adrien's priorities retook place.

"Mari!" He was surged on by his adrenaline to see her, he skidding on the ground over to her. Tikki hovered over her, applying whatever magic she was using to stabilize her partner. Chat willed away his own transformation, becoming Adrien once again. He cradled Marinette gently, feeling her skin becoming cold. He had been consumed by anger and hate towards his own father, for a while, he had been numb to the pain of seeing the love of his life like this. He wasn't anymore, and it came crashing back down on him, like a ton of bricks. "Tikki, how is she?!"

"I'm doing what I can..." Tikki said, almost hopelessly. "But she still needs a doctor... And she needs one right now. All I can do is... Slow it down..."

"I-I... I could help."

Adrien turned around to see another Kwami - Hawkmoth's? - Floating behind them. This one was purple, and resembled a moth - Definitely Hawkmoth's - And spoke with a soft, polite tone. It had wings, which seemed unnecessary for a creature who had the power of levitation, but Adrien didn't question it. "Who are you?"

"Nooroo... Y-You just defeated my master..."

"Nooroo, buddy, what happened to you?" Plagg spoke, hovering closer to the softly spoken Kwami. He spoke with a friendly, get caring and concerned voice, almost like an older brother to the recently released magical creature.

"You know this guy?"Adrien asked, fighting back tears.

"I do. Adrien, I promise you, we can trust him."

Adrien looked at Marinette once more. He figured he had two options. Leave her like this... Or take a risk with Nooroo. He hated the idea of even giving a Kwami that was allied with someone like Hawkmoth a chance... But if it would make sure Marinette would live... He'd chance it.

"What can you do to help?..."

"One Miraculous wielder can, theoretically, wield two Kwami at the same time, but for a shorter period of time. The more miraculous and Kwami involved, the less time the user can wield them, unless all of them are involved, in which case, the limits of each miraculous is abolished, and one could stay in their alternate form indefinitely should they choose to." Nooroo said. "That's why master wanted to gain all of your miraculous. To gain power. Once he had all of them, he would be able to tap into unlimited power... But right now, I can give you the same powers my master had. You would still be Chat Noir... But you would also create Akuma."

"How will that help?!" Adrien yelled. He had fought so many, he didn't even want to consider the possibility of creating one himself! And if that wasn't enough, the mere consideration of using one to help Marinette?!

"M-My master used them for evil, but their original purpose was to create heroes, not villains!" Nooroo quickly explained. How long had been been abused by Gabriel? He reacted in the same way, quickly becoming nervous and explaining quickly and briefly for fear of retaliation. "You - You could use the same powers to create a hero who could get Ladybug to a hospital instantly!... Your arm... Won't be able to carry her..."

Adrien only now looked at his arm. While he felt no pain from it, it was sure as hell not going to be able to lift Marinette.

He hated the idea... He really did hate it...

But the idea of losing Marinette was far, far worse.

"What do I do?..."

* * *

Creating an Akuma was nothing like Adrien had ever experienced. It wouldn't be inaccurate to say he felt like a God. He had the power to give anyone around him an ability of his choosing. He could control what they did. He could control what they would be given. With enough power, he could even control what they thought.

Gorilla was closest. Adrien felt terrible, but he needed to use the bodybuilding individual.

Actually giving the moths the power to become an Akuma almost felt relaxing, like he was taking his anger, and manifesting it into something else. but he didn't let that consume him. He asked for help. He never demanded it. He almost pleased into this ball of emotion, begging for help. "Gorilla... Please... I need help... Mari could die... I don't want to ask this of you, you've been through enough... But please, lend me your strength, and use the powers I give to you, and help me save her!"

And he was blessed with that help.

Gorilla had come. And before he knew it, he had taken Marinette and gone.

At least now she had a chance.

He felt his hands shake once he returned from his transformation with both Plagg and Nooroo. Using the ability to create an Akuma wore out Nooroo, and he claimed to need some time outside of his host in order to regenerate. This was the main reason the more Kwami were involved, the less time a person could spent in their alternative form. Both Kwami became tired independently of each other. When one became tired, they would split from the transformation.

For Nooroo, at least, the good news was that he would be able to remain in the transformation as long as his powers weren't used again.

"...You felt it, right?..." A spluttering voice asked from behind Adrien.

Gabriel. He was awake. there hadn't been a moment more in his life that Adrien wanted to crush his fathers skull more that today. He didn't even want to hear this. He began to feel the flares of pain along his bloody right arm, and made decided to make his way to the hospital himself, to make sure Marinette got there okay, and maybe get a painkiller for himself, once he made sure she was okay.

"The power... The strength... The ability to make anything you want into a reality... You felt that too, right, Adrien?"

Adrien's hand became a fist. _He had._

"You felt the power of possessing more than one Kwami along side you, didn't you... My broach.. You took it, and created one of my Akuma, didn't you?..."

His fist began to shake. _He had._

"And you felt... The increased power... You're the first person I know... To wield two Kwami in a transformation at once... So you know of their power..."

His nails dug deep into the palms of his hands. _He did._

"So you know what I'm saying is true... With the miraculous... We can bring back your - "

" _Shut up_."

A few seconds of silence descended upon the two of them in the attic, and time stood still. Adrien had had enough of hearing Gabriel talk like this. Like he actually understood his son. Like he actually cared.

"Adrien - "

"I'm _nothing_ like you, father." He told Gabriel. "I'm not anything like you. I never have been, and I never will be anything like you. You took something... A force for pure good... And perverted it into something evil... To hurt people, for your own selfish desires... I want to see Mom again. I do. You're right... But I won't ever hurt anyone else to do it... And you..." Tears came as Adrien remembered the state his love was in. the pain she was in. The fear he felt. The unbearable pain that lay ahead of him if he lost her. "You hurt Marinette... Its like if I hurt Mom... That's what you did to me today... And she still found it in her heart to let you live, even when you may have killed her..." Adrien glared at his father, tearing streaming down his face, and declared, loudly. "I am _nothing_ like you, father!"

"Kid..." Plagg said to his human partner, trying to comfort him. He knew how hard this was for Adrien to even say to his father, disregarding how terrified he was about Marinette's condition, and his own deep physical wound.

"Plagg... Just transform me. Please." Adrien requested, softly. "Nooroo, you too... You'll come with us for now, until I figure out what to do with you..."

His request was met with silent compliance, as both Kwami joined with his. He became Chat Noir once again, but felt nothing positive about doing so. "Enjoy your spare time of freedom, father." He said, opening the window to leave. "I'll let everyone know who Hawkmoth really is once I've made sure the love of my life is at the hospital and okay."

With that, he leaped out of the Agreste manor.

 _'And If she's not... I'll be on my way to join her.'_

* * *

 **How many of you noticed the throwback to chapter one?**

 **Did this come out okay? It's difficult to tell. there isn't really anything like this on the internet, which I know sounds really cocky, but it's sorta true. I don't have anything I can compare this to. I hope it was enjoyable, at least.**

 **By the way, I'd like to address a review I got, regarding how I describe my characters - guest reviewer, I completely agree with you. (This is on , if you're reading this on Wattpad, then this won't make sense without context.) I do use the same words to describe characters a lot, such as "blunette" for Marinette, but please understand, I'm working with a limited vocabulary to describe them here. I'm doing my best, but I fully agree with you, and I'll try and improve on that in Soul Link.**

 **For more from me, you should follow my Wattpad - And I cannot stress this enough at this point - That review I answered I would LOVE to be able to actually reply to, and Wattpad allows me to do that with you guys. I love reading what you guys have to say, and Wattpad allows me more community interaction. If you have a Wattpad, I strongly recommend following me on there - Don't think I'm not taking note of you guys. I have a list of the ones who I interact with the most. You all are noticed, and highly appreciated.**

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 **Other than that, I hope you enjoyed, and will see you in the next chapter of whatever it Is I do indeed decide to write next. See ya!**


	23. Best Of Worst

If there was any pain to Adrien's own wound, he hadn't even begun to feel it yet.

Against his own wishes, he had been dragged to a completely separate room from Marinette, to have his own wounds cleaned and stitched up. He had protested, even demanded that they take him to see Marinette. They were stubborn in their insistence though.

It turned out, that was thanks to the insistence of Gorilla.

A key difference between Adrien and Gabriel's use of an Akuma, was that when Adrien did it, the people he used remembered who had Akumatized them. They remembered the conversation, and they remembered the pleas Adrien had made. This also extended to what Gorilla had seen of Adrien. And he had seen a battered, battle worn boy. He was stubborn and protective of Adrien, befitting his job as a bodyguard.

But this had nothing to do with his job.

He was doing this because he thought it was the right thing to do.

Without treatment, Adrien was incredibly susceptible to infection. He had agreed very reluctantly, but he was so preoccupied with his thoughts and beating heart, he didn't even register the pain his right arm was emitting. Peroxide and needles were used, and despite Adrien having been given strong painkillers, this should not have been a painless event for him. He refused anesthetic. He refused anything that would put him to sleep. He refused to close his eyes until he saw Marinette.

If it wasn't bad enough that Marinette had ended up here... It got worse...

The doctors knew who Marinette was.

They had seen Plagg with Adrien. They had heard his explanation on how the Kwami helped the model become the hero Chat Noir. that had been broadcast to the entire country. Apparently, in their hurry, or by accident, or without thinking, or whatever the reason, Tikki was spotted with Marinette. The dots had been connected almost immediately.

If the reaction to Adrien being Chat Noir had been big, the reaction to Marinette being Ladybug was humongous.

Just another thing Adrien had failed to stop.

"... Leaving your right arm with a permanent scar." The doctor concluded, running his finger down the recently made stitches. "I'm very sorry, but there isn't anything we can do about that."

Adrien couldn't care less about the scar. He figured his modelling days were probably over anyway. He looked at it briefly. It almost looked like a lightning bolt, albeit far more broken and random. "It's fine. But doctor... Marinette... How is she?"

The doctor seemed to look away, hesitant to actually say anything to the young teenager. This doctor, Adrien knew, had worked here for years. He had been the bearer of bad news a hundred times before. He'd have had to report horrible, horrible things, to poor, poor people. The loss of a loved one, the failure of an experiment, the acquisition of some horrible disease or condition.

If he was hesitant to say anything now, this couldn't be good.

This only added to Adrien's anxiety.

"Doctor!"

"... There was... There was a huge wound that went straight through her left lung. There was... Also one that went directly through her lower stomach... We were able to replace the lung with a donated organ... But..." the doctor almost looked like he was about to start crying himself. "We... Her chances of survival are... Minimal at best... The operators say she has maybe a five percent chance to wake up. And until she does... We won't be able to guarentee her survival for more than a few minutes anyway... She's suffered incredible trauma from a source that is basically foreign to us... Essentially, we won't know if she will even wake up..."

Adrien's eyes widened and his jaw dropped in disbelief. Such a low chance of survival?...

"...Her overall chances of survival are... Slim to none. "

 _Slim to none..._

"Oh my God..." Adrien whispered quietly to himself, feeling his hands shake uncontrollably. His chest hurt, like a hammer was cracking down on him. His breathing all but stopped, unable to process the oxygen throughout his body. His heart was the only thing he could even hear right now.

 _Slim to none..._

 _Oh my God..._

 _She can't..._

 _No..._

"I... I... I want - " Words struggled with Adrien. He couldn't accept this. He couldn't. There was no way she was going to...

 _Leave him..._

She couldn't...

"I want to see her..." Adrien managed to choke out, unable to even look at the doctor, his eyes fixated firmly on the floor, refusing to let out a single tear in front of this man. His breathing had increased huge amounts. He struggled to access basic human functions. He really was in a state of shock.

"Of course." The doctor replied with understanding and softness. He placed a hand on Adrien's shoulder, and walked with him, taking him to Marinette's room, so he didn't have to show the world the face of his pure agony.

* * *

One of the worst things - No, the single worst thing Adrien had ever seen in his entire life was seeing Marinette in that bed like that. Surgical equipment plugged into her, IV, Saline, blood transfusions, and wires and tubes placed in various locations, including in her wrists, up her nasal cavities, and one in her neck. Her pretty face, cut, and bruised from the fight. Her clothes, torn and ripped apart, thrown onto a nearby chair. Her pigtails had been taken out, and her hair was messy and unkempt. Her eyes closed.

It was like a sight straight out of hell.

Adrien slowly approached the side of her bed. How had it come to this? How had she become so... Injured? So, beaten? So, broken? So... So...

He knew the reason why.

It was because he had failed her.

It was his fault.

"Hey... Marinette..." Adrien said, quietly. He didn't know if she could hear him. Maybe he was talking to himself. Or maybe she could hear him. Maybe he was talking to make himself feel better. He didn't even really know why he was talking at this point.

Tikki, Plagg and Nooroo had all left him alone. They understood he needed some time alone with the girl he loved, even if she wasn't able to respond to him.

"We... We did it, you know." Adrien told the unconscious Marinette. He was referring to Hawkmoth's defeat.

His only response was hearing her heart-beat monitor give its continuous beeping noise. _"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep."_

 _My fault..._

"We... We beat him... We beat Hawkmoth..." Adrien told her, again. His voice trembled as he remembered the fight. "It's... It's over now... He's gone... I... I called the police... Let them know... I... I wanted to tell you... I... I didn't finish him... I didn't kill my father... Like you wanted... I let him live..."

 _"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep."_

 _My fault..._

His face fell and retracted, so his teeth were visible, albeit by his facial actions contracting naturally. It wasn't his choice as he fought back his tears. "You-... You're so much better than me, Mari... You... You wanted him gone as much as I did... Didn't you... You were there... On the ground... And you asked me to spare him... I was consumed by rage... And... And you... You... You... Even to someone like him... You showed mercy... You were Ladybug without the mask... A better hero than me..."

 _"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep."_

 _My fault..._

"You're... You're so much... You're so much better a person than me, Marinette... You're so much better a hero... So much better a person... Even when everything is against you... Even when the world wants you gone... Even when someone tried to... To..." He couldn't say kill. He couldn't bring himself to believe that this was where Marinette died. "...You still defended him... Paris... The world needs more people like you... There's only a few people who even come close... And there's only one of you..."

 _"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep."_

 _This is all... My fault..._

Adrien found himself unable to stand anymore, and fell onto his knees with a heavy thud, and found himself unable to hold back his tears any longer. He cried, sobbing into the bedside that Marinette laid on, his trembling hands reaching and eventually holding onto her still, cold ones.

 _This couldn't be it._

 _It couldn't._

"So don't go..." Adrien begged the girl who didn't even move. "You can't go... You can't leave Paris... You can't leave me yet... You brought light into my life... you made me happy to still be here... you... You... you made me feel like I mattered... You made everyone in Paris... Feel like they mattered enough... For you to want to save them... Paris still needs you... I still need you..."

 _"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep."_

"Don't go..."

* * *

Her chances had been slim from the start.

Adrien knew this.

Marinette knew this.

She knew it from the second she woke up.

She wasn't going to survive this.

A miraculous wielder had high aversion to pain. They had the ability to heal their wounds faster. They could also rely on their Kwami to help slow down their bloodloss.

But they weren't immortal.

They could still die.

And that had never been more evident than right now.

Marinette didn't show any signs of fear. She didn't show any signs of resisting her fate. She faced it with a smile.

Adrien wasn't able to say the same.

She had only a few moments left to spare, even from the point she woke up.

"I think... This is it, Kitty." She told him, a smile on her face still. These were the first words she said to him. Her eyes were half closed, and her heart rate had begun to decrease. She was dying.

"Marinette..." Adrien's eyes were red. He hadn't stopped crying for such a long, long time, even long before Marinette had shown signs of waking up. He hadn't been able to help it. He would have cried until his eyes began to bleed. "Marinette, No... No!... Marinette, you can't!"

"It's not like I want to..." Marinette had managed to chuckle lightly. With her hand, weaker than anything Adrien had ever seen, she cupped his right cheek, and dried away the tears she could. Adrien pressed his own hands against hers. "You make it sound like I'm looking forward to this... Silly cat..."

"This can't be it..."

"It... It is... Kitty..."

"You can't Go!... You can't... You're... You're the light of my life... You can't go..." Adrien's tears ran continuously now. He couldn't stop them even if he wanted to. "I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry... This is all my fault... It's all my fault... I failed you... I failed to protect you... I failed to save you... I... I failed you..."

"It's no ones fault, Adrien..." Marinette told him gently, her smile still on her face. she could feel it. She was only a few seconds away from passing. "It is... What it is... you kept your promise... You kept me happy... Right until the very end... I love you.. Adrien..."

This was the final time Adrien had ever gotten to kiss Marinette. He pressed his lips softly against hers, as their final act of goodbye. He heard her heartbeat monitor fall flat. He didn't dare tear away from Marinette though... This was the final time... He'd ever get to see her...

Tears exploded from his eyes once he finally tore away, hugging the girl he loved, sobbing into the crook of her neck.

For the first time, she didn't return the hug.

...

There really had been nothing worse for Adrien than the funeral.

An entire city spent the day weeping their fallen hero. Adrien had been there to lower the casket into the ground, his own tears never stopping for a moment since the ceremony began. No one he knew had dry eyes. He doubted anyone in all of France had dry eyes in that moment.

Alya, her best friend, was being comforted by a hug from Nino, who as hurting just like she was. Learning who Marinette had been, just to see her die like that... Adrien wasn't sure he'd ever be able to understand the pain they felt from their perspective.

Her parents... Oh God, her parents... How they cried... They didn't yell though... They didn't yell at Adrien. He felt horrific. He wanted them to yell at him. He wanted them to scream at him. To yell it was his fault. To smash his nose and try to beat him to death with a shovel. He deserved it. All of it.

They treated him like he had done nothing wrong.

This was all his fault.

The entire city had wept for it's fallen hero. Her gravestone had been magnificent, it really had been.

Marinette-Dupain-Cheng : Ladybug - Hero Of Paris, Upholder Of Justice, An Inspiration To Us All.

Adrien felt the rain hit his face as he stood atop his family manor. He just stared up into the dark clouds, for God knew how long, unmoving, blinking rarely, and hardly even breathing. He was empty. Broken. A shell of the person he once was. An empty vessel of who he used to be. A dead man walking.

"Marinette..." He said softly to himself, to the clouds, and to anyone who happened to hear his voice, which was no one. "Do you... Do you see me from up there?... Can you... See me?..."

No response. Of course not. Was there even anything up there? Was he merely talking to the stratosphere? He wanted to believe that Marinette still existed somewhere... In some way...

"I'm sorry, Marinette... I really am..." He said again. "I failed you... And now... You're gone... Perfection... Incarnated... Ripped away by a cruel world... Why... Why is this the way the world works?... Is this... How father felt?... Is this feeling... What drove him to steal the miraculous'?" His only reply was the sound of the rain. He looked at his hands. His ring was gone. Stored away, along with Plagg. Along with Tikki and Nooroo. He couldn't see them anymore. He couldn't... "...You'd never forgive me if I even tried to do that, would you?... Heh... Even if I brought you back... You'd still be my perfect Ladybug, wouldn't you... You'd do what's right... And I'd be wrong..."

He looked down.

"Do you remember what I promised you?" He asked, to the heavens again. "You never really replied... Because you didn't want to acknowledge the possibility... But I told you something... And I meant it."

He took a step forward.

And let gravity do its work.

"You go - I go."

* * *

Adrien's eyes opened, and he found himself in Marinette's hospital room once again. He would have shot up, but by now, he was used to the horrors of sleep. Now it was something he accepted with resignation. Acceptance almost. That he knew when he closed his eyes, he would be greeted by his greatest fears come into manifestation of his mind.

The same dream. It had come to him three times now. Three dreams, for three nights. He could remember it so clearly. It was like he was cursed to live that dream out, again and again. Like he was predicting the future. The memory of it always shook him, despite knowing it so very clearly... It was the knowledge, Adrien knew, that it could still happen...

He feared the day that nightmare became a reality.

He hadn't left the room in three days. He had seen each and every visitor, ever single doctor, and every single examination. He had done it all in general silence. He barely spoke.

Since he had remained in here, the doctors had told him some good news. Marinette would be okay if she woke up. Her chances of waking up were still slim though. They had eliminated the threat of her going into cardiac arrest or a coma should she awaken again, both of which had been serious possibilities due to the nature of her injuries, but if she woke now... She would be okay. Probably.

The young teenager looked over his girlfriend. Her heart-beat was steady, according to the pulse monitor. He lived in the crippling fear of that flat-line sound. He was already terrified he'd wake up to it. Signs of his lack of sleep were obvious. Dark circles under his eyes, and his refusal to leave her room had found him in serious need of a shower. He doubted anyone could blame him. At least, he hoped not. He wanted to be here, next to Marinette.

No matter what happened. He at least wanted to be here.

The world had gone into a frenzy regarding who Marinette was. Who Ladybug was. It was certainly a step up from the reaction Adrien had gotten. He couldn't say he blamed the world though. He probably would have been one of them had he not known. He detested the media sometimes... But he couldn't bring himself to hate them now. He had far bigger concerns.

He wondered to himself, what would he do with Marinette if she woke up?

He knew she wasn't out of the woods yet... But he had made a plan. A list of things, places, and events he wanted to attend with Marinette. Real, actual dates he wanted to have with her. He wanted to take her to a cafe and buy a cup of coffee with her. He wanted to talk her on a walk throughout the countryside. He wanted to go camping with her. The normal things. After the fights they had taken part in... They deserved to be normal, didn't they?

Would they ever get that chance?...

"Please wake up, Mari." He said, quietly to himself, his hands interwinded, like a religious . "Paris still needs you... But... I need you still... I'm not ready to say goodbye..."

"...Ad...Ri...En?..."

For the briefest of seconds, Adrien thought he was going insane. that he was so desperate to see her awake, that he was imagining it.

"Adrien?..."

He wasn't insane.

This was reality.

He looked at Marinette.

And her eyes, one open, the other half open, looked back at him.

"...Mari... Marinette?..."

Marinette looked confused, and looked around her surroundings. "Where am I... And why do I hurt?..." It took her a few seconds to recollect her memories. "Oh yeah... Hawkmoth... We... We won, right?..."

Her response was a huge, tight hug from her boyfriend, tears already rolling down his face rapidly. He was sobbing like a baby at this point, holding onto Marinette as tightly as he could. "Mari!"

He had almost lost her.

She was still in critical condition.

But she was here.

Awake.

And alive.

Marinette took a few seconds to register it, but eventually lightly returned the hug. "Be careful... If you squeeze any tighter, you might finish me off." She joked.

* * *

 **I gotta be honest with you - I know how cliche it is to have the bad ending happen and the main character wake up from a dream... but that dream was originally the ending to this story. After re-reading the drafts, I just couldn't bring myself to have that as the ending, but I still wanted to show it to you guys... So, there it is. Had Marinette died, that's how it would have gone down. Pretty dark stuff, even for me.**

 **I think we're going to go for 25 chapter with MariChat. We're winding down in the story now guys, So we're going to focus on tieing up some loose ends over the next few chapters. Hopefully I'll be able to answer your questions,**

 **I hope you managed to enjoy this emo-fest of a chapter, guys. It really was dark, even for me.**

 **You can follow me on Wattpad, for an earlier updating schedule by roughly half an hour, more interactivity, response to your comments directly, and more!**

 **You can also follow me on YouTube, to see me as a broken man in various games.**

 **You can also follow my Tumblr for blogging needs and updates on Soul Link once it's ready for prime time.**

 **And I will see you in whatever it is I do indeed decide to write next. See ya!**


	24. Closure After Time

"I'd like to see Gabriel Agreste, please."

Two weeks had passed since the fight with Hawkmoth. In those two weeks, the only thing that anyone had been able to talk about was the revelation of his identity, and the identity of Ladybug. It had been a massive media storm, all without end. There had been thousands of attempts to see Gabriel Agreste, now resident in one of the most secure prisons Paris had to offer.

The only person who had been allowed to see him was Adrien. And that was today.

The receptionist looked at Adrien, expecting it to be another reporter or someone else. Once they saw who it was, their eyes seemed to open up more, and they saw upright, like their superior officer had just walked in in them. In a way, they had. Chat had worked with the police a lot. In a sense, he was one of their superiors.

"O-Oh! You're uh, Adrien Agreste, right?" The private asked, typing away at his keyboard once he had been addressed. He knew who Adrien was. He had even worked alongside him a few times. He doubted the young hero recognized him.

"Yeah, that's me." Adrien confirmed, sullen. It felt so weird to be asking for his father like this. The building in which they were wasn't exactly brightly lit. It felt more like a castle than it did a prison. It also brought Adrien a feeling of shame. Shame that he had to even come here to see his father. Shame that his father was who he was.

"Urm, they'll be just a minute. They're preparing the room for you. And restraining Mr. Agreste." The young officer informed the young hero.

"Thanks." Adrien said with a made his way over to the waiting seats, with his hands stuffed into his grey jackets pockets. He saw a young child staring at the line down his right arm. His scar. His reminder of the fight he had with his father. His constant reminder that he had fought with his father like he had. A reminder that he had nearly become a murderer that day.

The normal colorful and kind personality Adrien exhibited was basically gone right now. He was jaded. Tired. Life had been very difficult recently. Of course, some people had made comments about Adrien and Gabriel's relationship, and the fact both of them were masked miraculous holders. Some people had even called Adrien someone who conspired, working with Hawkmoth. No matter how stretched the theories were, Adrien always found himself wanting to drain his own blood from his body, so he wouldn't share the Agreste blood tie to his father.

That these people seriously though Adrien could have had anything to do with this... This... Pure evil that his father had taken part in...

He sure had done a number on his father though. When inquired, Gabriel had only gotten out of hospital a few days ago. He also had been reported have lost to use of his eye, leaving him partially blinded. Adrien couldn't care less about that. He didn't regret it at all.

So, why was he here?

He could thank Marinette for that. She had wanted him to visit his father. She said she wanted him to have a sense of closure regarding the entire incident. Regarding he and his fathers relationship. Regarding he and his fathers fight. Regarding... Well, everything.

"Adrien Agreste? Mr. Agreste is ready for you to visit him."

" _Terrific_." Adrien sarcastically muttered under his breath. This wasn't going to be any fun. "Thanks, officer."

* * *

Gabriel Agreste was an unrecognizable man to his son. The most noticeable thing was a series of bandages around his right eye, freshly changed by the looks of things. They covered his right eye socket, and were wrapped around his head in a diagonal manner, leaving his still functioning left eye exposed. He was covered in scars, cuts and bruises, all across his face primarily. Several long, deep ones ran from the right side of his face, where the slash attack Chat Noir had thrown had gotten him deeply. His nose seemed to have healed quickly, surprisingly, as there wasn't really much of anything there, but it was still cut and bruised to hell.

Adrien looked at his father in serious disgust. A really big part of him regretted letting him live. He didn't really deserve to even be sat in front of his son. The only thing he really deserved was a coffin, six feet under the ground.

Even here, Gabriel kept his composure. He didn't even seem particularly angry with Adrien. He kept his same, emotionless face, as Adrien sat opposite him.

"Adrien."

"Gabriel."

"Your using my actual name?"

"Assault." Adrien said, raising a finger on his hand. "Destruction of public property. Hostage taking. Vandalism. Attempted murder. Evasion of justice. Endangering of minors. Abusive behavior. Emotional and actual manipulation. They had to make up the bestowal of superpowers in innocent humans charge just for you. A few more jailable offenses." Adrien commented, his hands returning to fists "You're not much of a father. Why should I address you as one?"

"Fair point." Gabriel said. His hands joined together in front of him, intertwining his fingers. He didn't seem at all panicked or upset with the list of crimes Adrien had just listed out in front of him. He spoke like he still had power over his son. "How have you been?"

"You know, that's funny." Adrien said, putting on a fake smirk. "In the last ten seconds, you've shown more concern for me than you have in the last ten years. What're you hoping, that I'll pay your bail?"

"Adrien - "

" _Hell_. It's been absolute _fucking hell_ , that's how I've been." Adrien spat. He didn't even want to be here. Years, nearly a decade of anger and hate was bubbling inside him in this moment. "Don't try and act like you give a damn about me. You've caused more suffering for me than I could have imagined possible for anyone."

"Adrien, everything I did as Hawkmoth, I had your best interests at heart."

"I'll bet telling yourself that helped, didn't it?" Adrien asked. He was angry. He wasn't afraid. Not of his father. He didn't aim to please him anymore. Not after everything. His fury exploded, and he began to yell at his father, every single thing he felt and thought. "I suppose nearly killing Marinette was for my own good too? Or this scar." Adrien held up his right arm, showing the clear markings on his right arm. They were permanent. "Turning my closest friends into villains, making me fight everyone I cared for. Making me choose between my loyalty to my friends, and my familial duties to you? Pushing me away from my friends, keeping me confined, and then, to top it all off, trying to kill me! Was that all for my well being? For my benefit?!"

Gabriel looked at his hands, and let out a heavy sigh. "I would have thought you would have wanted to see your mother again... You used Nooroo, right? You've created Akuma. You've seen what you can do."

"I've never forced anyone to do anything." Adrien defended. "I did that only because Marinette could have died."

"You know with that power, your mother could come back."

"Against her will."

Gabriel seemed to look at Adrien for the first time properly since this entire conversation started, like he only now just registered the sheer anger that Adrien was emitting.

"Your way would have brought mother back against her will. she wouldn't have come back and lived happily ever after with us. She would have been a hostage." Adrien stood up. Really, what was there left to say to his father? Marinette had asked him to speak to him. She hadn't asked him to speak for him for long, or to make amends with him. "Tell yourself what you like. I don't care. I really don't care, Gabriel. You know something else? I tried. I really tried to look at things from your perspective. And all I could think was how much I'd be hurting Marinette. And in spite of all of that, despite you putting her in danger, almost killing her... She wanted me to let you live." He turned to leave. "You should be grateful she's a better person than I am."

"Adrien... I'm sorry."

Adrien stopped dead in his tracks, followed by a few seconds of silence. Was this some sort of joke? Some emotional play? A trick? A cover up? What? "Come again?"

"I'm sorry. for everything that happened to you. For the pain I caused you."

Turning to face the inmate now, Adrien saw he had his head lowered, staring at his hands on the table. Shame. He saw actual shame in his father, for the first time in his life. Regret, almost. "What, you think that's gonna make everything better?"

"No. I don't suspect I'll be able to make things better, will I? I'm in here for the rest of my life." The sentence had been carried out virtually immediately. There hadn't even been a point in a trial. Gabriel had simply refused one, and pleaded guilty before they were even in the courtroom. He had been sentenced to life imprisonment. "For what it's worth, son, I'm sorry that it came to what it did."

Adrien couldn't decide what he felt more. Anger, or sadness. He was furious that his father dared even apologize now, like that would make everything okay. What did he expect? That Adrien would run over to him, hug him and forgive him? That they'd sit down and finally hash everything out? that he thought his son would be that easy to win over? The time for that had passed the second he dared hurt Marinette like he had. At the same time, he felt sadness. His father would be in here for the rest of his life. And this was the very first time they had even had any sort of emotional connection. All it took was a near murder, a fist fight, and a jail sentence.

What a relationship they had.

"...Goodbye, Gabriel." Adrien said, before he left the room. He let the door clang as he left.

For the first time in two weeks, he was glad he didn't kill his father.

* * *

"Marinette? You awake?"

"Uh huh. Come on in."

Adrien entered the hospital room, and he was gifted with the sight of his beautiful girlfriend sat upright in her bed. Aided by doctors, she had been able to set her bed to an upright position, so her body was sat upright, like she was on a chair. She was slightly paler than her normal complexion, but that would change in time, once her body had regenerated more of her own blood.

Her wounds had healed far better than Gabriel's, or even Adrien's had. Her marks weren't permanent, despite them being such brutal markings. Adrien had jokingly praised her powers of good luck, and Tikki's magic, blissfully unaware that those were, in fact, the reasons for it. She didn't have any permanent reminders, despite her having a brand new lung in her. The doctors were amazed that she wouldn't have a permanent reminded like Adrien did. Even if they did know she was Ladybug now.

All in spite of everything, she still looked beautiful. Her hair no long had her pigtails in. Adrien hadn't managed to acquire some of those yet. Her hair had grown slightly longer too, and was still un-styled, but was brushed smoothly, thanks to Adrien. He had brushed it for her daily at her request.

"My lady..." Adrien said, taken aback by her. He still was amazed... And so eternally grateful to whatever Gods had declared she must live. Seeing her again, no matter how little time he spent apart from her, was like seeing her again all for the first time, feeling his love for her ignite once more each time.

"Kitty." Marinette smiled warmly at her boyfriend. "Did you bring me anything?"

"Oh, yeah." Adrien remembered, stepping into the room and showing her a plastic bag he had brought. "I stopped by your house. Your parents made you all these treats to help you feel better." He explained to her as he placed them on her bedside. It smelt of home to Marinette. Freshly baked bread, sweets and warmth.

"Oh? How did they treat you?"

"Well, the first time I went... Boy, they had a lot of questions for me. I really, really thought your father was gonna kill me. I just... Told them the truth. I didn't know you were Ladybug until the day before I met them." Adrien sighed. "I don't think they like the idea of you being Ladybug too much... But I also think they realize it's too big for you to ignore and neglect... And, low key, I think they realize they can't stop you... So... They're gonna support you... But they aren't too happy about it."

"I can't say I blame them..." Marinette sighed. It was a lot to throw at them at once. their daughter is Ladybug, in the hospital, inches from death, and is dating her partner in heroism/classmate. They had had enough of an incident just explaining their dating status to them. Marinette went red and covered her cheeks. "God, Alya is gonna run me ragged..."

"I tried explaining everything to them... But you're gonna have a lot of questions to answer. Makes my reveal seem trivial." Adrien joked.

"How did they even learn?... You know, that I was Ladybug?"

The young blond teenager sighed and sat next to his girlfriend. "That... May be my fault. I Akumatized Gorilla and asked him to bring you here... But I guess I didn't warn him that your Kwami had to remain out of sight... Or maybe Tikki just forgot. Maybe she panicked. I don't know. But... Well, since everyone knows Plagg is part of why I'm Chat Noir, and they saw you with one... They must have connected the dots on their own."

"So it's no ones fault." Marinette said warmly. "It's just one of those things that happens."

Adrien couldn't help but smile at her. "You know, you're a lot calmer about this than I thought you would be, Mari."

"I nearly died, Kitty. I guess I realized that there's no sense in worrying about the little things like that. We did it, didn't we? We beat Hawkmoth. We saved Paris. What happens next, happens."

"I guess so."

"Speaking of Hawkmoth..." Adrien gulped. "You went to see your father today, right?"

"Only because you asked, sweetheart." Adrien muttered. "I saw Gabriel, yeah."

"How'd it go?"

The male hero let out a very long blow of air out from a small hole he made with his lips. "About as well as you'd expect... But... He said sorry. He apologized to me. For all the pain he'd caused me. He's stuck in a cell for the rest of his life... But he said he was sorry to me."

Nodding in her understanding, the blunette asked, "Do you feel better?"

She was confined to a hospital bed, and was still showing more concern for Adrien than herself. How was she so thoughtful?... "...I'm... I'm glad you convinced me not to kill him, Mari. I'm glad you told me to let him live... I feel... Better."

Marinette leaned over to him and kissed him on the cheek. "Good. I'm glad you feel a bit better."

"Maybe worry about yourself a bit more, bugaboo. You're getting checked out later today, right?"

"Tonight. When there's less people around." Marinette confirmed with a sweet smile.

"I'll make sure to get you home."

"Speaking of homes, what's gonna happen to you with Gabriel in prison?" Inquired Marinette.

"Well, no one, as it turns out, is entirely feeling the need to put Chat Noir in an orphanage. I'm pretty much being left to do whatever I want. I'll stay at my home for now. Maybe I'll keep modelling. I don't know yet... I don't know about my father's fashion line yet. I guess I'll ask Nathalie if she wants to take care of the business side of things. If not, I can ask around. There's no reason to let it fall into nothing, is there? Heh, you could be the lead designer if you want."

Marinette giggled at that. "I could give a couple of ideas if you like."

They went home that night. And for the next few days, the world seemed to revolve around Marinette, but like with Adrien, it all cleared up eventually. Leaving Adrien and Marinette to enjoy their teenage romance.

* * *

 **Well guys... This story is drawing to a rapid conclusion.**

 **The next chapter will indeed be the finale of Chat Out Of The Bag. I didn't feel the need to show the world reacting to Marinette being Ladybug because, lets be honest, It would be the exact same deal as with Adrien, and this entire story was dedicated to the idea. There really isn't a need to show it, unless i want the novelty to wear off on this story. I hope you can understand why I chose that.**

 **I hope you have enjoyed this chapter.**

 **If you enjoyed, you should definitely, definitely head over to my Wattpad. you can get stories there a half hour earlier, and I can interact with you guys more, along with showing some of my original stories.**

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	25. How Things Are - Final Chapter

"So this is the guy?"

"Yeah."

Both Adrien and Marinette knocked, and, when answered, walked into a secluded room in an apartment complex somewhere in Paris. Adrien had never been to this particular area in the city. He never had a reason to, not even as Chat Noir, like the Akuma were determined to stay away from this area. He had no idea why that was, but it never occurred to him to look. Perhaps he was simply uninterested, or hadn't paid enough attention to it.

He found what seemed like a very basic room, with only a table in the main living area. the floor was wooden, and the entire area was Chinese in aesthetic. It was all very minimal living, barely even any technology in the room. And despite having been welcomed in, there was no one inside.

"Hello?" Adrien called out into the room. He was met without a response. "Mari, you're sure this is the place, right?"

"Absolutely. This is where I met him."

"I can sense him here too." Plagg commented, levitating from his owners pocket. He floated around the room, seeming to remember all of the details rather well.

He was followed closely by Nooroo, who had tagged along with them. He had remained with the group for quite some time. It was, in fact, him who had suggested returning to this place. He had wanted to speak to Fu.

"You feel that too then?" Tikki asked, emerging from Marinette's purse. "Nooroo? you also sense it, right?"

"I - I do..."

Looking around and venturing deeper into the room, Adrien made his way to the table. on it, there was an octagon shaped object, with jewels atop it. Each jewel was in a different method of clothing, such as a broach, or a ring, or a pendant. They were all different colors, and despite seeing them for the first time, the young hero knew what they were instantly. "Miraculouses?...

"They're very old magical creations."

"Gaaah!" Caught completely off guard by an old mans deep voice, Adrien shot back and upright, half expecting that he was under attack. Marinette was more relaxed than he was, but she reminded herself it wasn't the first time she had met Fu.

"Relax, Chat Noir."The old Chinese man said, raising a hand as a symbol of peaceful intentions.

It was weird, but Adrien's first impulse was to ask how the master knew him, but then he remembered, freaking everyone in Paris knew who he was. He had automatically reverted to a fighting stance, ready to brawl, but he relaxed upon seeing the old man. He had grey hair, and seemed to walk with a bit of a hunch, presumably due to back pains. He also wore a red and white Hawaiian looking shirt.

"So... You're Master Fu?"Adrien asked, curiously.

"That is me indeed." Fu nodded, and turned himself to Marinette whom he greeted with a smile. "Marinette. Ladybug. It is good to see you again."

"Likewise, sir."

"You didn't think to mention this guy before?" Adrien asked, somewhat sarcastically.

"I must apologize for that, Chat Noir." Fu said. "It was I who requested she keep my location a secret." He bowed his head in apology, a Chinese traditional custom. "I had to prioritize the safety of the Miraculouses. Now that the danger is negligible, I was intending to request a meeting anyway."

Fu prepared some tea for each of the individuals there. Adrien and Marinette both noticed, his tea was very sweet. It border-lined with tasting bitter, but never crossed that point. Adrien would have compared it to a cafe's standard, were is slightly less sweet. Fu seemed to enjoy going a tiny bit over the top with things such as this.

The Kwami seemed to like Fu. Even Plagg, who was the most sarcastic one of the trio, seemed to hold Fu in high regards and respect. Fu had even had Camembert prepared for the cat Kwami.

It was a daunting moment for Adrien. This was the man he had to thank. For his Miraculous. for his ability to become Chat Noir. Marinette had explained that much to him... But it still was a lot for the young Parisian to fully accept. He had just assumed the Miraculous had made its way to him because Plagg had chosen him, not that someone else had chosen Plagg to go to Adrien.

"I believe it is only proper to congratulate the pair of you." Fu said, after a long sip of his own tea. "You have defeated your greatest adversary, Hawkmoth. This is truly a momentous occasion. You have done for me a task that I was unable to accomplish. I thank you for that greatly, young heroes."

"You're the one who chose us for this task, right? To beat Hawkmoth. That's why you gave us our miraculouses?" Adrien asked, wanting to confirm Marinette's assessment.

"That's correct. I both chose you personally."

"...May I ask why?"

Fu took another long sip of his tea, leaving Adrien in suspense. He looked over to Marinette, who seemed just as curious as he was. She leaned over the table very lightly, as if she was peering over. Once Fu had finished his sip, he placed his cup on a cup holder gently. "Because I have seen your kindness first hand."

Both the miraculous holders shot a look at one another.

"You may not remember me, but there has been a point win which you have both aided me. You stood to gain nothing from helping me. Helping me would have, in fact, been a hindrance to your day. And regardless of that fact, both of you aided me in different ways. you went out of your way to help." Fu looked between the two of them. "That is, what I believe, is the greatest quality of a hero."

"I see..." Adrien nodded. "Why us though? I mean, surely we aren't the only ones..."

"I'm curious about that too, Mr. Fu." Marinette added. "There had to be more suitable people than us."

"That is incorrect, Marinette."Fu lamented. As he did so, he petted Plagg on his head gently. Adrien himself hadn't been aware Plagg could purr. fu had proven him wrong on that front in the space of five minutes. "The fact is, in my very long life, I have never seen two individuals more suited to being Ladybug and Chat Noir. You are correct, there are many fine people who also are worthy of wielding a miraculous. The miraculous of Ladybug and Chat Noir, however, have to be selected very carefully, not just as one, but as two."

"I don't follow." Adrien admitted.

"The cat and bug miraculouses always work as a team." The Chinese man explained. "Always. they are connected to one another. That is why you alone are able to track the movements of the other one. This is why you are able to work so well together. You were considered and then chosen to become Ladybug and Chat Noir because your personalities, attitudes, opinions and chemistry was the best out of anyone in all of France."

This caused both the miraculous wielders to blush. That was how well they worked together?

"It is not uncommon either, for miraculous wielders to fall in love." That comment sparked an even deeper blush between the two. "You two were connected long before I arrived. You could consider yourselves, in your terms, soulmates. You were made for each other."

The two of them joined hands and looked at the other, and smiled.

"This is why I selected the pair of you to be the holders of the Cat miraculous, and the bug miraculous."

"About that..." Adrien commented. Marinette nodded at him, and he carried on. "We were thinking... Well... Hawkmoth's gone now... And... Well... The miraculous... People know about them now, and they know we have them... So... We thought..." Adrien slide the ring from his finger, and placed it in his palm. He held it out to give to Fu. "If you want it back... It is yours."

"It is true. There had not been a recorded incident in which the miraculous holders were discovered. this is not a situation in which I have prepared for. It is an unexpected one."

"Sir." Plagg said. Adrien was surprised Plagg even had the vocabulary to show respect for anyone verbally. "They're good guys. They're really good guys. I want to stay with Adrien."

"Plagg..." Adrien was moved, in a word. Plagg...

"Master Fu, sir, I agree with Plagg. Marinette is an excellent Ladybug. I want to remain with her."

"Tikki..."

The miraculous defender laughed quietly, like he had seen this coming. "I could not agree more with you two. Plagg is certainly a difficult creture to gain respect from, and Tikki has an eye for spotting talent and kindness." Fu took hold of Adrien's hand, and wrapped the young boys fingers around his ring. "Keep it. And take good care of it. "

* * *

"So, Mari, tell me, how's it feel knowing everyone knows who Ladybug is?" Adrien asked with a certain amount of smugness to his voice. He was teasing her. The world had learned who Ladybug was about a month and a half ago, and enough time had passed for the two of them to be able to joke about everything that had happened.

"It hurts my ears for one thing." Marinette responded with a smile. "I keep having to hear Alya freaking out about it. She still hadn't come to terms with it yet." School had... Certainly been an experience for the blunette girl. There had been a long, long , long list of questions and admirers she had had to deal with. If it weren't for Adrien helping her, she wasn't sure if she'd have ever gotten them away from her.

"Now you know how I felt." Adrien laughed. "Still, I guess it's easier for you. There's not a whole lot of danger for people knowing who you are. With me, we still had to worry about Hawkmoth knowing who we were, but since he's rotting in a cell, it doesn't matter too much."

"It's still kind of embarrassing though..." The teenage girl lamented, her face going a bit red. "It's weird knowing that everyone knows what I did as Ladybug..."

"You're too humble. Enjoy your time in the spotlight, m'lady." Adrien commented, showing off the muscles on his right arm, along with his scar.

A month and a half of no real danger, no real need for Ladybug and Chat Noir, had been liberating to the two teenagers. They still patrolled, of course, but there wasn't an explicit need for them. It had let them settle back into their regular lives, focusing on school work, their friends, and of course, one another. Adrien had gotten his wish of simply being able to take Marinette on dates from time to time. The two of them had just been to a cafe, and were wondering around Paris with no real destination in mind. They got a few looks, but by this point, they were used to it. It didn't really matter.

What Marinette had found amazing about the who city knowing about her identity as Ladybug, was just how compliant and understanding they were of her wishes. More so than Chat Noir, weirdly, but then again, she had been the more popular hero of the two of them. People seemed to admire and look up to her far more than the amount of people did Chat Noir. That was just how things were. So while she did occasionally have to deal with some over-enthusiastic fans, many had been respectful of her desires to have a normal life, as well as hero superhero one.

The people of Paris understood her requests and left her to it. She wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to express how much she appreciated that.

"Maybe you enjoy the spotlight too much, Kitty." Marinette teased, gently prodding him in the cheek.

"You wound me."

"How have things been at your house, anyway?"

Adrien bit his lip and thought for a moment. "Well... It's weird without Gabriel being there, but it's pretty much like normal. Gorilla pretty much takes care of me from a legal perspective, but he doesn't stick around all the time. So it's not like anything had changed too much for me." He turned. "Why, has stuff been difficult for you?"

"Aside from seeing some people outside my house every few days with Ladybug themed banners?"

Adrien couldn't help but laugh at that. "You know, I don't think it ever got that bad for me. You really are in the spotlight, Bugaboo. Maybe you should do some poses for the camera. Sign a few autographs. You know, really get an idea for the life I've had up until recently."

"Oh, shut it."

"But I'm having fun!"

Marinette just sighed again. "You really are a piece of work."

Smiling, Adrien wrapped his arm around the back of Marinette's neck and held her close to him. "You'd miss me if I left."

"That's definitely true. Aside from those people, Maman and Papa have sort of gotten used to it now. I guess? I don't know. Seeing them is just sort of awkward now... But they're getting used to it. I think it's more that they weren't expecting it - you know, Ladybug - To be me."

"Your parents are nice. They at least care about you." Adrien reminded her. "They're only like that because they're worried about you." To be completely honest, Adrien was amazed her parents even slightly tolerated her life as Ladybug. He had spoken with them a few times since she had left the hospital, and he had learned they were, in fact, proud of her, but said it was hard to speak to her the same way when she has been going out and saving them on a regular basis. It made sense to Adrien, but he would never be able to thank them enough for the support they showed Marinette.

"I know." Marinette responded, resting her head in the crook of his neck, her normal, comfortable resting place whenever they were close like this. "And I care about you."

"That's pretty much all I need, m'lady." Adrien said, resting his own head atop Marinette's. He made a light purring noise from the back of his throat, mostly just as a joke for the two of them. He liked to act like an actual cat occasionally when they were having a good time together, mostly because he had done it once, and Marinette had found it adorable.

* * *

School was like a dream for both the teenagers after fighting for so long. Well over a year of fighting Hawkmoth, of fighting Akuma, of fighting all sorts of villains and evil creatures for so long, just returning to find the area of an equilateral triangle was like heaven to both of them.

There was certainly a lot of change with the revelation of Marinette being Ladybug, the first and foremost being that Chloe had finally learned when to keep her mouth shut. she hadn't admitted fault in the slightest, but she knew now when to keep her distance. surprisingly, she and Adrien had spoken. And She had accepted Adrien's feelings for Marinette. That had been a surprise to everyone in the room. It was unlikely she would have done had she not known Marinette was in fact, Ladybug.

Alya had the next biggest reaction known to mankind, and had thrown more questions at Marinette than a machine gun would be able to. Contrary to what the blunette girl had been expecting, the blogger seemed to be completely ecstatic about the fact her best friend was the superhero she had admired for so very long.

While it had died down after a month or so, there was still definitely the wonder and excitement about the two of the young heroes in the classroom.

"So, Marinette, which one did you kiss first? Was it Adrien or Chat Noir?" Alya asked with the biggest grin on her face, smugly looking at her flustered friend. Their conversation had caught the attention of Adrien and Nino, sat just below them. Adrien shared Alya's grin. Marinette had to remember to make sure he paid for that later.

"...If you must know, it was Chat." Marinette confessed with a large crimson blush.

"How did that happen?!" Alya asked with an excited squeal.

"You remember when you convinced her to help me after I'd stayed off school for a week?" Adrien asked, recalling the memory fondly. "It's quite the story, isn't it my love?"

"You're so dead."

"But I didn't get to tell them how you were the one who kis - "

"Adrien!" Marinette groaned in embarrassment, covering up her cheeks. Adrien laughed warmly at his girlfriends embarrassment.

It was one of the few times he felt normal.

It didn't last long.

"Alright students, settle down." Their teacher announced upon entering the room. "I assume everyone had completed their homework assignments. I want you all to take them out and prepare them for me to collect."

Adrien reached into his bag and searched for his work pad. "Chat Noir and Ladybug save the world, but no one is gonna save them from Mathematics."

In that moment, however, something shook the ground. Like footsteps, on a gigantic scale. The started out faintly, coming closer with each and every step. As they came closer, the classroom could hear panicked screams come from outside.

"What's going on?" Adrien asked, standing up and walking, with he intention of checking the window.

He was suddenly knocked back with serious force, as the wall essentially exploded in front of him. He was sent flying backwards, just short of hitting the wall. In place of the wall, was a giant fist. At the other end of that fist, was a giant human that looked like a cross between a man, and a giant scorpion.

"Everyone get out!" Marinette yelled, he orders complied with quickly, even the teacher helping to evacuate the students. Once alone, MArinette checked on Adrien. He was fine, just a bit winded. "Is that an Akuma?!"

"No way. Fu has Nooroo. And an Akuma couldn't do this."

"So we're dealing with something completely different."

"Looks that way."

Marinette sighed. "We're never going to get to have a normal life again, are we?"

"Probably not... But you know something, my lady?" Adrien smirked at his girlfriend. "I don't think I mind that too much."

Marinette smiled and cracked her fingers. "I guess it's time to get to work."

"I guess so. Plagg - "

"Tiiki - "

"Claws out!"

"Spots on!"

There were plenty of fights after their fight with Hawkmoth. There were more villains that needed to be defeated. there was more that Ladybug and Chat Noir needed to do to defend the people of Paris.

They never fought alone.

They remained by one another's side until the very end.

* * *

 **And so ends, the tale, of MariChat: Chat Out Of The Bag.**

 **I feel like that even past Hawkmoth, there is still so much for them to do. So much for them to protect, and so long they have left to fight. That's why I ended it like this. For those of you wondering, yes, they did get married in the end.**

 **Guys, thank you so, so much for coming on this journey with me. It's certainly been an experience, and I've loved working on it with you guys. It's been a roller coaster for me to work on, and I'd like to thank each and every single one of you for being here with me throughout it.**

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